In the Water Park
by moonlightwriter66
Summary: Zuko and Katara meet at a water park. What else is there to say? ;D AU, rated T for language. ZUTARA ALL THE WAY!
1. Arriving

Chapter 1

A/N: I do not own Avatar: the Last Airbender. I also do not know what Zuko or Katara's last names are, so please tell me if you know!

"Katara, you better hurry up!! If you don't, we'll have less time to spend at the water park!" yelled Katara's dad from the bottom of the staircase.

"Katara? Are you listening to me, young lady?" he yelled again, when she didn't respond.

"Yeah, yeah, dad! Just a minute! I haven't picked out my swimsuit yet!!" Katara yelled back from her room. She returned her attention to her swimsuits. _Maybe the yellow one……no, the flower's too big_. She set the yellow one aside. _The pink one is too…Ugh, why do I even have a pink one?_ She put that one aside, too.

"How many swimsuits could you possibly have?" asked her brother, Sokka, as he entered the room, interrupting Katara's thoughts.

He looked at the 14 swimsuits laid out in front of his sister. "Apparently a lot."

"Yeah, so you see my dilemma," Katara replied.

"Why don't you just close your eyes and swing your finger around, and see which one it lands on?" Sokka asked impatiently.

"Oh, you mean like this?" Katara said as she swung her arm right into Sokka's chest, hitting him hard.

"Oof. Oww, Katara!" Sokka yelled.

"Oops, sorry, I didn't mean to," Katara said innocently.

"Yeah, right! You know what, I don't know why I even bother sharing my genius with you," said Sokka, folding his arms.

Katara snorted. "Some genius you are!"

Sokka threw her a glare. "You know, why do you want to choose, anyway? I just pick out what's on top!"

"Show's how much you know! Those are shorts you're wearing, genius!" Katara retorted.

"Yeah, well, I was gonna change anyway!" Sokka yelled, going back to his room, changing, then coming back. He looked at the many swimsuits and thought for a moment.

After a while Sokka said, "Hmm..I know why you're trying to choose the perfect one!"

"Why? I can't wait to hear your genius theory this time!" Katara said.

"It's to impress the guys! You think that you're so clever, strutting in your bikini, while the guys drool over you, well, if they so much as come 4 feet near you, I will slice their heads off!" Sokka said, his voice becoming louder with each word.

Katara blushed, "Th-That's not what I want!" her voice high and shrill, giving her away.

"Sure it's not." Sokka said, smiling.

"Not like I don't notice you trying to impress Suki!" She said, thinking of a comeback. "Ha, with those scrawny arms it's a wonder you can even lift a finger!" Katara said, getting her confidence back.

This time it was Sokka's turn to blush. He shook his embarrassment off and said, "That's not the point, with my new sword I can chop all the boys heads off before they even come near you!"

"Well, ever since you got that stupid sword of yours you think you can cut anybody's head off!" Katara said.

"I can!" Sokka countered.

"Dad won't let you!" Katara said.

"Well then I'll improvise!" Sokka retorted.

"What will you improvise? I'm sure you'll come up with something amazing!" Katara said sarcastically.

"I'll find a sharp rock!" Sokka said.

"How intelligent, a rock! Have we gone back to the Stone Age?" She said, realizing how stupid that sounded.

"Yeah,--"

"Are you two quite finished? I'd like to go somewhere today, please!" Toph yelled.

"Toph? I thought we would pick you up at 1:00!" Katara said.

"Oh please Sugarqueen, your dad picked me up already, and if you haven't noticed, It's already 1:05." Toph said.

"Right, so I guess I pick my white one," She said picking out the white bikini. She had added just a little touch of color here and there, making it seem less bland.

"Yes! Lets get going already!" Sokka said punching is fist in the air. They hurried down the stairs and caught up with their dad who just finished packing.

Katara, Toph, and Sokka headed out to the car and hopped in. Everything was packed and ready to go, so they took a 1 hour drive to the water park. As they were driving, Katara noticed something about Toph. Her cheeks had gone green!

"Toph, are you okay?" Katara asked.

"I'm fine," Toph replied, swaying.

"Are you sure?" Katara asked again.

"I'M FINE!" Toph yelled.

Katara was taken aback. "I'm sor--"

"No, I'm sorry, I just don't like cars, they vibrate too much, they make my feet feel like I'm going every direction at once! Like at the amusment park, when you take one of those spinning rides, you know?" Toph said, looking sicker and sicker. "I think all I need is a doggie bag and I'm set."

"Okay, lucky for you Sokka eats in the car even though he's not allowed to, and vomits all the time," Katara said, handing Toph the bag.

"Hey I get humgy im carms," Sokka mumbled, chewing on a chicken leg.

"How Sokka is still so skinny is a mystery to me," Katara said under her breath.

"Hey I heard that!" Sokka said.

"So? Do you think I care?" Katara shot back.

"Well, if you're supposed to be a good sister--"

"How can I be a good sister if I have a brother who's a bad example?" Katara said.

"Please, I'm a much better example than you'll ever be!" Sokka yelled, his chicken leg almost hitting Katara in the face.

"Right, says the boy who eats like a pig," Katara said.

"I'm building up my strength!" Sokka said.

"What strenghth?" Katara yelled, disbelievingly.

"The strength I'm gonna use when I--"

"SHUT UP!!!" Toph yelled, holding back the urge to puke. "You guys are making my headache even worse!"

"Oh I'm so sorry!! I apologize for my brother's bad behavior," Katara said.

"MY bad behavior! Oh, like you're an angel!" Sokka shouted.

"Yes! I AM!" Katara shot back.

And it went on like that for about thirty more minutes. Arguing, vomiting, munching, crunching, more arguing, and a lot more vomiting…until…

"We're here!" Her dad announced, getting out of the car.

Toph vomited one more time before getting out with Katara and Sokka.

"Wow this water park is HUGE!!" said Sokka holding two chicken legs smothered in barbecue sauce in his hands.

"Yeah, it is!" Katara said breathlessly.

"I think you guys should go ahead without me, I'll just stay here, on the nice, soft......not moving ground." Toph said, her head pounding.

"No, Toph you're not missing one second of our fun. We'll start off in the Lazy River, how does that sound?" Katara asked.

"Boring," Toph said with a smile, "Let's go."

A/N: I hope you liked it!


	2. The Lazy River

Chapter 2

A/N: A second chapter, everybody!!

"AAAHHH!!! I'M BLIND!! I'M BLIND!!!!!"

Everybody turned to look at the screaming girl floating down the Lazy River.

"Toph, Toph? TOPH!!" Katara screamed.

"What? WHAT? WHERE ARE YOU???" Toph yelled.

"Toph, just because _you're_ blind, DOESN'T MEAN _I'M_ DEAF!!!!" Katara yelled back.

"Oh, right. I'm sorry, but I just can't SEE right now!! No BIG deal," Toph said, waving her hand in front of her eyes.

"Yeah, I know, but think of something relaxing, like the beach, or the foot massage we got before, remember?" Katara said.

"Katara, I think the heat's got to you because you're getting dumber by the minute. On the beach, my feet can't feel anything because it's all sand and no vibrations! And don't get me started on the foot massage!! It was a nightmare! I'd rather get eaten by barracudas!" Toph said.

"Okay, those were bad examples. ("Ya think?") I know! What about you just dip your feet in the water, it might feel nice to feel nothing for once," Katara suggested.

"Are you CRAZY? Or have you just LOST it??" Toph screeched. "I can't just take a nice dip in the water! I'm blind for Pete's sake! The only way I can see is through my feet! Or have you FORGOTTEN?? "

"Just try it! Remember? Water is my element. If anything happens to you, I'll be there!" Katara soothed.

"Alright, but if I drown…"

"Yeah, yeah, it'll be all my fault, I know, just do it!" Katara laughed.

Toph dipped one foot in the water, pulled back, then dipped it in again. She did the same thing with the other.

"Hey, ya know, this does feel kinda nice!" Toph said.

"What did I say? Of course it feels ni—Uh, oh." She said.

"What? What? I can't see! WHAT?? All I can hear is a waterfall and—oh." Toph screamed.

"Relax! I'll bend it away from you! Don't freak, like I said, water is my element," Katara said as they went under the waterfall.

"Like I forgot!! But thanks, I don't want to get soaked," Toph said.

"It's a water park, Toph, you're _gonna_ get soaked!" Katara reminded her.

"Huh, that, I _tried_ to forget," Toph said. "But I gotta admit, this is great."

"Yeah! And once it's too cold, we'll go to the theme park," Katara said. "Hey, maybe you can try surfing in one of those places where you can experience surfing without the sharks!"

"Sure, maybe," Toph said.

"Okay Toph, the ride's almost over, let's get out now," Katara said.

After she got out, she started looking for Sokka.

"Sokka? Sokka?? Toph! Where'd Sokka go?" Katara panicked.

"Ugh, Katara, my toes are all prune-y! Wrinkly, just like my grandma's!" She shivered.

"Toph! This is serious! I can't find Sokka!" she said, looking for him.

"Don't worry, Sugarqueen, he's coming over there!" Toph said.

"Where? I don't see him! How do you know?"

"Are you kidding? That guy snores like you wouldn't believe! I can hear him from Africa!" Toph exaggerated.

"Oh, now I see him, thanks Toph," Katara said.

"Are you sure it's him?" Toph said.

"Well his lips are covered in barbeque sauce and he has a chicken bone in one hand, so I'm just guessing it's him," Katara said sarcastically.

"Sounds just like him, alright," Toph agreed.

"Sokka? Sokka! SOKKA!"

"What? What? Aw, great Katara, you ruined my chicken dream!" Sokka muttered.

"Oh you better hope I don't ruin your face, too! Listen, Sokka, if you can't keep up, you can go by yourself and meet us back at the fountain at 4:00, you got that?" Katara half-yelled.

"Okay, okay, calm yourself, sis! 4:00, I got it," He said, and took off.

"Wow, Katara, who knew you could be so motherly!" Toph said, amazed.

"Oh, hush up, we're going to go to that ride over there," Katara pointed to the slide where you ride in tubes.

"Oh, okay, I don't want to go on any ride without a tube, or I'll surely drown," Toph said worriedly.

"Don't worry, I'll always be there! And as I said before…" Katara said, "Water is your element," Toph finished, "I know."

"Well? What are you waiting for? Let's go!" Katara said, grabbing Toph's hand, pulling her along. "We have a lot to do."

A/N: The second chapter is done!!! Wow I've never felt this inspired before! Or this jittery! I'm going to write the third chapter now! Bye!!


	3. Sightseeing

Chapter 3

A/N: I am on a roll! This is the 3rd chapter in one day!! I'm going to write a fourth one to celebrate!

"This is the most fun I've had since forever!" Toph yelled over the thunder of splashing water.

"I'm so glad you like it here," Katara said. "We have to meet Sokka in 45 minutes, and I've saved 15 minutes for changing, so do you want to go to the wave pool for our last 'ride'?" Katara asked.

"Sounds cool," Toph laughed.

So they walked to the Wave Pool and put their stuff on a chair. They walked deeper and deeper until they were up to the 4 feet sign.

"Should I tell you when to jump?" Katara asked.

"No need, Sugarqueen, I can handle myself," Toph replied.

The first wave came and all Katara needed to do was push up slightly and her whole body would lift up, as if weightless, flowing with the wave. She slowly floated down, and the sensation felt wonderful. She felt like this is where she belonged. This is where she needed to stay.

Soon the waves came to an end, so they would have to wait 5 more minutes until the next couple of waves came.

So instead of waiting, Katara decided to go out of the water to sunbathe. Toph followed suit.

Katara and Toph plopped down on a chair and laid down.

"This is so relaxing," Toph sighed.

"Tell me about it. I totally deserve this for all the putrid hours spent on babysitting, but I just had to have that cell phone! It's so much better than my stupid old flip phone," Katara said.

"Hah! You've had that cell since the 6th grade!" Toph laughed.

"Yeah, it's all beaten up and scratched!" Katara agreed.

Then, they heard the familiar 'oooOOOOOO!!" and hurried back in the wave pool. As soon as the waves started, Katara slowly closed her eyes. But right before they shut completely, something caught her eye and her eyelids flew open again.

Over at the 5 ft mark, her eyes caught on to a gorgeous body. His hair was silky black, his muscles clearly shone, and his whole body was like a dream. Her heart stopped then started beating 3x as fast, as if recharged.

"Katara? Are you okay? What are you looking at?" Toph asked, feeling Katara's heartbeat quicken.

"I'm fine," Katara murmured.

"Are you sure? Because my feet say that you seem like you just melted. Have you had too much sun, or what? Sugarqueen? Are you there? Yoo hoo? Calling all Kataras within my five mile radius…_beep…beep…beepbeepbeep!_ Found a Katara! Are you there? Can you hear me?" Toph said, "What are you doing? KATARA!"

A wave almost hit Katara, but at the last second, she snapped out of her trance and whipped the wave away.

Unfortunately, away meant right into Toph's face.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO PROTECT ME FROM THE WATER, NOT HIT ME WITH IT!" Toph yelled.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I wasn't thinking! I was distracted! Oh, Toph, please forgive me! I really didn't mean to!" Katara apologized.

"Well you should've thought twice before you whipped your water right into me! But since you're so apologetic, I guess I'll let it slide, but don't let it happen again!" Toph said strictly.

"Right, right, never again. I'll splash myself before I even think of splashing you," Katara nodded frantically.

"You bet you will! Or you'll be answering to my two agents!" Toph said, holding up her fists.

Katara laughed. "I won't be wanting to meet those two!"

"You bet you won't!" Toph replied, also laughing.

Another wave came at them, and this time Katara jumped with Toph. Another two waves came at them, and they jumped both of those, too. On the fourth wave, the gorgeous guy Katara was staring at stumbled back right into Katara.

Katara wasn't looking at who it was, so she yelled, "Watch where you're going! Seriously, can you be any more…" Katara looked up at the guy. "cl-clumssyyy…" Katara's voice faded then she was forced to squeak the 'y'.

The guy gave a nervous, but beautiful, chuckle and said, "Cute," then walked away.

When he was out of earshot, Katara regained her voice and said to Toph, "CUTE?? _CUTE_? Wow, that guy must have such a big head! I can't believe, out of all the things he could of said, he chose CUTE!"

"Woah, Katara, calm yourself, you just met the guy!" Toph said.

"You're right, I shouldn't get overworked over some stranger," Katara said, breathing deeply.

"And about the 'of all the things he could have said', is one of the things, 'Will you marry me?'" Toph sniggered.

"Toph! Will you stop!" Katara said, blushing a deep shade of red.

Toph started laughing and soon enough, Katara joined her.

"Yeah, I guess I won't see him ever again, so why should I care?" Katara said when the laughter died down.

"That's right, and was that what you were distracted by when you hit me?" Toph asked.

"Th-th-that's not imp-p-portant right n-now," Katara stuttered. "Besides, we better meet up with Sokka, anyway." And under her breath she added, "But you've got to admit, that guy was gorgeous."

"Okay, sure," Toph said, smiling. "I guess everyone does some sightseeing once in a while."

A/N: If you didn't get the last part, by "sightseeing" I meant seeing the lovely sight that was Zuko. BTW, I didn't get to finish it yesterday, so I finished it today.


	4. Meeting Sokka

A/N: If I continue like this, I'll be finished this story in no time! Please review, I don't have many reviews! And I would like to thank my first (and only) reviewer, _**zutarababe**_. Thanks so much for your review! It means so much to me!!

After Katara and Toph were dry and changed, they went off to the fountain where Sokka was already standing.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? IT'S BEEN…" Sokka checked his watch, "1 MINUTE! I'VE BEEN SO WORRIED!!!" Sokka yelled.

"Oh, shut up, Sokka. We'll buy you more chicken legs if that's what you want," Katara said.

"That would be nice, maybe 10 this time? I finished 5 fast!" Sokka said, calming down quick.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever," Katara said, pulling out 9 dollars from her purse. "But you owe me, Mr. I'll Pay You Back $150 tomorrow!"

"You owe her $150?" Toph asked disbelievingly.

"You know how much he eats monthly? He never pays me back so I charge interest. If he doesn't pay me back next month it'll be up to 160 dollars!" Katara told her.

"Wow, Sokka you gotta cut down on your meat!" Toph said.

"Like that's possible," Katara said. There was silence for a while, then Toph said, "Hey, Sokka, do you know who Katara bumped into today?" Toph raised her eyebrows at Katara.

Katara grabbed Toph's arm and dragged her out of earshot. "ARE YOU CRAZY??" Katara whisper-yelled. "You can't tell HIM!! He'll FREAK OUT!!! You do not know how he reacted when he found out I was going out with Jet!!! Or how happy he was when I dumped him!! If you were my friend, you wouldn't have to make me go through that again!"

Toph held her hands up in surrender. "Okay okay, I won't tell him."

"Good," Katara said, and they returned to Sokka.

"So as I was saying…" Toph said, and Katara gave her a wide eyed serious look. "We bumped into Jet! And he wanted Katara back." Katara's eyes grew bigger while Sokka tried to control his temper although his face had gone dark red. "But Katara said no, and she never wanted to see him again." Toph finished quickly, worried one of them would explode.

Sokka and Katara stayed quiet while Toph waited for her reply.

"You turned him down?" Sokka said breathlessly.

"Uhh..yeah, yes I did." Katara said, playing along.

"Good job, little sis! You don't have to buy those chicken legs, I'm just so proud of you!!!" Sokka exclaimed.

"Thanks!" Katara said, surprised at what Toph had done.

"Well, I also have something to say," Toph butted in.

"What?" They both said together.

"I don't want to go on the theme park rides, I think I've had enough for today," Toph said, faking a yawn.

"Alright, then, we'll have dinner then go back to the hotel. We have one more day here, you know?" Katara said.

"Yeah, and tomorrow we'll go on all the rides we missed!" Toph exclaimed.

"Sounds like a plan," Said Sokka.

So they headed home for a big dinner, and a cozy night of sleep.

A/N: I'm sorry if you don't like this chapter, and I feel like the chapters are getting shorter and shorter!

**PLEASE READ:** Seriously, I really would love to know what my story's like, if it's not good, then maybe I'll stop writing it! SO REVIEW.


	5. Meeting Zuko

**A/N: Oh no nonono...I'm such a jerk! I haven't updated in forever! I was planning for a lot more chapters, but I've been so busy and...no. no excuses. I'm so sorry! I hope I haven't lost you guys, and here's my next chapter, and since summer is approaching I'm going to have more free time and that means more time to type up my story!**

"Katara, Sokka, Toph, I have great news!" Hakoda declared.

"What is it dad?" Sokka said, yawning and scratching his back.

"Well, the hotel decided to give us 2 more nights, and that means two more days of fun!" Sokka's dad replied happily.

"Aw! I'm starting to get homesick...why do we have to stay?" Sokka whined. Katara jabbed him in the ribs.

"That's wonderful news, dad!" Katara exclaimed cheerfully. "We'd love to stay, isn't that _right, _Sokka?" Katara said as she glared at Sokka.

"Not me, I want to go home ASAP," Sokka grumbled.

"Just a second, dad. I need to speak with my _dear brother_ for a moment," Katara said through clenched teeth. Her dad gave her a worried look, but nodded. "Thank you," Katara said sweetly with a fake smile. Then Katara grabbed Sokka's arm and hauled him to the living room.

"Just stop thinking about yourself for once, Sokka! I really want to stay, and we always end up leaving early just because of you!" Katara whispered harshly.

"But I really miss Suki!" Sokka complained.

"Send her an email or something!" Katara said, as if it was the obvious thing to do.

"Okay, okay! I am so sick and tired of this water park though!"

Katara was about to explode. _I can't believe I'm stuck with this IDIOT of a brother! _She thought. "Oh, in that case, we should just leave! It's not like there's _other _things you could do in this city! It's not like there's a movie theater down the street, or a museum next door, or a restaurant a few blocks away, or a—"

"Okay! I get it, I get it! Geez, do you have to rub it in?" Sokka grumbled.

"Why yes, I think I do." Katara replied coolly. "Now if you excuse me, I have to get Toph while you do whatever you do."

"Okay, yeah whatever." Sokka replied. Suddenly, Sokka said, "Wait! When will you be back?"

Katara sighed at her brother's protectiveness. Even when she was angry at him, Sokka still manages to show he cares. Katara replied gently, "I'll be back around 5:00, maybe a bit later. You don't have to worry about me all the time."

Sokka's gaze softened and he said, "You're my sister. I'd be devastated if anything happened to you."

Katara was warmed by his words. She smiled then hugged her brother before leaving to the water park once more.

Toph was annoyed. _This water park goes on forever! How many rides do they have? _She thought to herself. Katara, however, was the complete opposite. Surrounded by her element and by lots of happy faces, she felt at home and at ease.

It was already an hour past noon and they hadn't stopped to eat yet. Toph's empty stomach churned and growled. She was desperate for food.

"Sugarqueen, as much as I absolutely _love _walking for 3 hours, I'm really hungry, and I could use a break," Toph said. A moment passed without an answer from Katara. "Um...Hello? Katara?" Toph asked, starting to panic. No answer. Toph sensed so many vibrations around her that she couldn't tell if Katara was right next to her, or 5 miles away. Her breathing became heavy and ragged.

"KATARA!" Toph yelled, which caused everyone to stop and look at the little blind girl.

Toph sensed the awkward moment, and was about to say something when Katara, who had been next to her all along, whipped out of her dream state and said, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Toph! What did you want to say?" Toph glared at her and said nothing. When the people around the two girls started to move, the blind Earthbender half-yelled, "Katara! Are you absolutely nuts? I thought I had lost you!" Then, after a while, Toph whispered, "You have no idea how scared I was..."

Katara felt thoroughly ashamed of herself and wrapped an arm around Toph's shoulders. "I'm so sorry...I was just...trying to find something..." Katara admitted.

Toph was confused. "Find what?" she asked.

"Oh, it's nothing I guess." Katara said. Her stomach let out a loud growl. "Hey, you wanna go eat?"

Toph smiled. "I thought you'd never ask."

As soon as Toph and Katara got their food, they sat down at a table to eat.

"So get me caught up, Sugarqueen," Toph demanded, "I thought we were supposed to leave today."

"Well, yes, we were, but then the hotel offered us another 2 nights free, if we paid for one more night. So, my dad gave in." Katara explained.

"Oh...so we're coming back tomorrow and the next day, too?" Toph asked, trying to conceal her disappointment.

"No, I was thinking that tomorrow, instead of going to the water park, we could go to th—" Katara abruptly stopped talking as her eyes landed on something.

"Sugarqueen?" Toph asked.

When Katara didn't respond, she sighed. _Here we go again..._ Toph thought. After a moment, Toph decided to get the dazed Waterbender's attention again.

"Hey! Sugarqueen! If you're going to keep dozing off like that, then I'm going to have to call _you _Snoozles, too!" Toph said, exasperated.

"Oh, sorry Toph," Katara mumbled.

"No, it's quite alright, I'm used to it now," Toph replied with a smirk. "Just one question," she said. "What the HELL are you staring at this time?"

Katara was startled at Toph's little outburst, but replied, "Oh...it's just that guy again..." Toph snickered. _Well, well, well. I think I know what she was searching for, now don't I? _Toph thought smugly.

"Well if you like him so much then why don't you go talk to him?" Toph suggested. Katara blushed at her friend's comment.

"I...I really don't think that's the best idea..." Katara said worriedly.

"Oh, I think it's a fine idea," Toph replied, and stood up.

"What are you doing...?" Katara asked slowly, when she saw the smile on Toph's face.

"Giving you some...motivation," Toph said slyly. When Toph came closer, Katara eyed her friend suspiciously.

"Um...what is that supposed to mean...?" Katara asked, still not catching on. Then, in a blink of an eye, Toph grabbed a hold of Katara's wrist. Katara tried to wrench her arm out of the little blind girl's grasp, but she had an iron grip. To the Waterbender's horror, Toph began to drag Katara to the man's table.

"No...No! NO!" Katara gasped as they came closer. She tried to make a run for it, but it was too late. As soon as they reached the man's table, he looked up and Katara quickly stopped fighting the Earthbender and put on a weak smile.

"H-hello," Katara stuttered, then cursed herself for being so nervous and shy around a guy she didn't even know.

The man was obviously very puzzled and said his own bored 'hello' in return.

_Great. It doesn't seem like he could care less, _Katara thought angrily. Toph quickly shook Katara out of her thoughts when she said, "Hi. This is my friend, Katara. She's been, ah, admiring you from a distance," Toph said with a huge grin before she turned around and left.

_I could KILL that girl! _Katara thought, while fidgeting in her spot as the two awkwardly stared at each other.

"Um...well...since your friend introduced you, I suppose it's only fair if I introduce myself," the man started. "I'm Zuko, and I must say, I'm quite flattered to hear that you admire me." He smirked.

Katara blushed a deep shade of red before catching his playful smirk. "Well, _Zuko, _I'm quite flattered that you didn't run away after she told you that," Katara replied.

Zuko smiled, which made Katara blush again. _Ugh, I'm so stupid! Why can't I stop blushing? _She looked around before she noticed that he was sitting all alone.

"Hey, why don't you come sit with us?" She blurted out before she could stop herself. She gasped and clapped a hand to her mouth, her eyes wide with shock. Zuko looked at her, he was surprised as well, but he smiled again and said, "Sure, why not. It was getting lonely here anyway." He picked up his bowl and followed her to their table.

**A/N: Well I hope you enjoyed that...I tried to make it a bit longer...I don't know if it worked or not...I apologize for any mistakes. Thank you for still reading even though I haven't updated in quite some time.**


	6. Fireflies

**A/N: A SPECIAL THANK YOU to zutarababe for being my FIRST reviewer (as well as being an inspirational reviewer), and I found Asabella, Novalightz, Danette, cheesecake22, Stefi and Zutarian Knight had the most helpful comments for keeping me motivated, inspired, and for boosting my once low self esteem! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, each and every one of you guys were so helpful. (I especially love it when you guys review more than once! ;) Just saying...) And to Stefi: I don't mind constructive criticism, I actually like it, so I can improve my writing. I did notice that I lack details, and thank you for pointing that out. Also, to answer your question about where Sokka gets the chicken legs from, he's **_**Sokka!**_** He has chicken powers! (But honestly I think Sokka carries around chicken legs in a plastic bag) and I don't have a brother like Sokka, my brother is the complete opposite! To Asabella: I'm so glad you look forward to my updates so much! :)**

Afterward, Katara walked home with a bright, wide smile plastered on her face and a special spring in her step. She was almost about to skip when she remembered how old she was. Katara wasn't about to act like an eight-year-old again.

"Well, somebody seems to be in a very good mood," Toph said smugly.

"Yes, yes I am," Katara replied happily. Toph snickered. "And I owe it all to you!" Katara said. She grabbed the unsuspecting teenage Earthbender's hand and spun her around.

"Okay! Katara! Enough!" Toph said in an annoyed tone, even though she was smiling at how overjoyed her friend seemed. Katara laughed.

"I'm sorry Toph, it's just that I feel so ALIVE!" Katara giggled to the world. She spread her arms out wide and spun around.

"I'm beginning to worry about you, Sugarqueen." Toph laughed while punching the Waterbender's arm. Even though Toph's punch hurt a lot, and probably left a bruise, Katara's mood didn't change a bit. Katara twirled two more times, and then ran to catch up with her blind friend. Then, out of the blue, Toph asked, "Why did we leave so early?"

Katara was confused. The sky was dark already, so she assumed that it was around 5:00. She checked her watch. Only 3:00! "Toph! We still have two more hours to spend! C'mon! I want to see that garden that we passed a few minutes ago!"

Toph stifled a yawn and said, "No way, Sugarqueen, my legs are nearly broken from all that walking you put me through. I'm going home."

"But—Toph! I really want to go!" Katara said.

"Believe me Sugarqueen, I will just slow you down. You can go by yourself and give me all the details about your pretty little flowers tomorrow morning. Goodnight!" And without another word, Toph left. Katara was a little angry at the little Earthbender because she had left her all alone. She was about to chase after her, but Toph already disappeared into the thin fog that had started to float in. Little did she know that Toph left for a very good reason.

"Hey Katara," A strong male voice called from behind her, and grabbed her arm. Katara panicked and froze the man in his tracks. When she turned around, she found a wide-eyed Zuko glaring at her from the inside of his ice cage.

"Oh my gosh I am so sorry!" Katara apologized. She was about to unfreeze her captive when the ice began to melt off of his skin, and once the ice turned into water, the water quickly evaporated. Katara gasped.

"You're a Firebender!" She exclaimed.

"Oh yeah, I probably should have told you that earlier," Zuko said nonchalantly.

"Uh, yeah!" Katara said. "That is something that I would've liked to know!"

"Well, you didn't tell me you were a Waterbender, either, so we're even," Zuko replied calmly.

"Yeah, I guess," Katara grumbled. Then, she put on the bright smile she had on earlier. "So what are you doing here?" Katara asked.

"Oh, I was on my way to the hotel when I saw you," Zuko answered.

"So you're not doing anything right now, and for the next two hours?" Katara asked hopefully.

"Nope, why?"

"Great! There was this garden that I've been dying to go to and I understand if you don't want to go, but if it's no trouble then—"

Zuko cut her off by saying, "I'd love to go."

Katara smiled, and blushed once she realized she was rambling. She only rambled when she was nervous. "Well then let's go! We're wasting time!" She grabbed his arm and bolted down the road, toward the entrance of the garden.

Once they arrived, Katara was surprised that there weren't many people in the garden. She approached the entrance gate and found a man there. She tapped him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, but if you don't mind me asking, why aren't there any people here?" she asked the man.

"Doncha know the garden closes at 3:30p.m on Sundays. Now you'd best get outta here. Shoo! We don't accept any visitors at this hour. Go away." The man said irritably.

"Thank you," Katara said sweetly, when she really wanted to spit in the man's face.

She returned to Zuko with a disappointed face. "They're not open. We should just come back tomorrow," She said dejectedly. Zuko sighed.

"It's alright, we'll get here real early tomorrow, so we don't miss it again," Zuko said. Katara smiled.

"You're right, we can always come back tomorrow," She agreed.

"Let's go home," Zuko whispered. Katara began to walk away, but Zuko quickly spotted a park just around the corner, and took Katara's hand. "Zuko?" Katara asked.

"Do you see it?" Zuko asked.

"See what?" Katara said.

"Just around the corner, a big field with benches and trees and everything? Do you see it?" Zuko asked again.

Katara looked at the direction Zuko was dragging her towards.

"Uhm...I..." And then she spotted it. It was a quaint little park with a few cherry blossom trees and bushes. It wasn't much, but it was the little glittering pond in the center that caught her attention. "Oh, wow! I can't believe I missed that! How do you miss something like that?"

Zuko laughed. _He has such a great laugh, _Katara thought. "I have no idea. You must be pretty oblivious."

Katara rolled her eyes and said, "Just be quiet, we have a park to go to!" She began to run. Zuko, who was walking behind Katara, crashed into her when she stopped abruptly. He grunted. "What's the matter?" Zuko asked angrily.

"What if...what if...what if the park is closed?" Katara's voice trembled.

"What are you talking about?" Zuko said. "Parks are open to the public at all hours! What park is closed at 3:30 in the afternoon?"

Katara blushed. "Sorry...I guess I wasn't thinking."

"It's alright. I guess you're just tired," Zuko said.

"Yeah, that must be it," Katara mumbled. She sighed. "Well, I guess we should go now!" This time, she ran all the way to the park, nonstop. When they got there, both benders were panting lightly, and Katara smiled.

"I beat you," She said proudly.

"You never said we were racing," Zuko said. Katara shrugged. "You're just jealous that I'm faster than you."

"I—You are not—I can't believe you—UGH!" Zuko sputtered. He watched Katara laugh and skip ahead merrily. Then, for the second time that day, she stopped. Zuko bumped into her again, but as hard as this time.

Zuko sighed. "What is it this time?"

"Look," Katara breathed.

Zuko scanned the area, but saw nothing special. Just a few cherry blossom trees here and there, a bush, and lots of grass. There was the lake, then more trees, and... Something flashed. Not just something, but some _things_. They were like stars winking in the night sky. Except, it was 3:45 in the afternoon. The moon wasn't even in the sky yet. The air was hot and humid, and it was really cloudy.

"_Fireflies,"_ He whispered. There wasn't just one. Or two. There were ten, twenty, thirty! They all formed like a belt of Christmas lights floating from the trees and along the pond.

Both Zuko and Katara took a few moments to watch the mesmerizing flashing of the fireflies.

"I'm so glad you found this park," Katara whispered, scared that if she talked too loud she would scare off the lightning bugs.

"Yeah, you owe it all to me," Zuko whispered back. Katara scoffed at his arrogance.

Then, out of nowhere, rain started pouring down from the heavens. All at once, the fireflies disappeared into their unknown hiding places.

"Oh, just great," Zuko muttered. "I'm wet."

"No kidding, genius," Katara said. "We better get back to our hotels." They started running, never stopping, the rain blocking their view.

"Can't you bend the water away from us?" Zuko yelled over the pounding of the rain.

"I'll try!" Katara yelled back. She started bending a water shield around the two of them. They began running again. After a while, Katara's hands grew tired from holding them up for so long. They began to numb.

"I can't block the rain for much longer!" Katara warned Zuko.

"That's alright, I see my hotel, just keep it up for a little while!" Zuko replied. They ran down the streets and toward the hotel Zuko was talking about. Before they arrived, though, Katara's hands fell and they both got soaked.

Zuko glared at her, but through the pouring rain Katara couldn't see it. "What was that for?" Zuko asked.

"I got tired! I told you I couldn't keep it up for much longer!" Katara replied guiltily.

"Aw, you got tired. I guess it's worth taking a break and getting both of us soaked, huh?" Zuko said sarcastically.

"Yeah, pretty worth it," Katara said.

Zuko glared at her again.

"Hey, you try holding up a water shield for 15 minutes while rain is pounding down on you!" Katara said in her defense.

"If I _were _a Waterbender, I'm sure I would've lasted longer than you did," Zuko muttered.

"What was that?" Katara said. Zuko could be so irritating.

"Oh nothing your highness, _everybody _needs a break once in a while," Zuko said, giving her a bow.

This time it was Katara's time to glare at Zuko. Reluctantly, she put the shield back up again.

When they finally arrived, Katara said, "This is your hotel? It looks a lot like mine..." Katara's voice trailed off as she realized it _was _her hotel. "This _is _my hotel!" Katara said excitedly.

Zuko laughed, "That's great, but my uncle doesn't come back until seven."

"So? That's only a problem if you don't have the keys...you don't have the keys, do you?" Katara said.

"No, not really..." Zuko replied.

"Well then where are you going to stay?" Katara asked.

"I have absolutely no idea," Zuko said. This was a lie, because he could always run to his uncle's tea shop, but he didn't have enough energy. He could also try his sister's room, but he really wasn't in the mood for Azula at the moment.

"So...I guess you can stay at our place, I mean, for a while, just until your uncle comes back and everything, but if you don't want to, then I guess—" She realized she was rambling again, and cursed herself silently.

"What? Just stay out here in the rain, by myself? No thanks!" Zuko replied. "Sure, I can stay at your place, but only until 6:45. I don't want my uncle to...get any ideas..."

"Okay, then I'll show you to my room then!" Katara said cheerfully. She took the lead and started up the steps. She stopped for the third time that day, and Zuko crashed into her once more. _Ugh, I guess old habits die hard, huh? _A dazed Zuko thought to himself. Katara turned around and folded her arms.

"If I'm going to show you my room, then you better show me yours, too." Katara said stubbornly.

Zuko sighed. "Okay, follow me," Zuko took them up to the third floor, and went to room 263. He leaned on the door and jerked a thumb in the door's direction. "This is my room." In Katara's head, she tried to memorize the number. _263, 263, 263. Got it._

"Okay wonderful. Now to get to my room, you take the elevator down one floor, and...to...room...1...8...6." She stopped walking. She knocked on the door and yelled, "I'M HOME, SOKKA!"

In no time, the door flew open, and Katara was in the arms of her older brother. "KATARA! You had me so worried! Where were you for the past 10 minutes? You said _FIVE O' CLOCK._"

"No, I said _around _five o' clock," Katara replied, annoyed.

"Whatever. Ohmigosh, you're SOAKING WET!" Sokka just noticed. Katara rolled her eyes and bent the water out of her clothes.

"Now I'm PERFECTLY DRY," Katara said, and marched inside. "C'mon, Zuko," She muttered to the bewildered Firebender behind her.

Before Zuko could talk or move, Sokka yelled, "WHO IS THIS?"

"This is my _friend, _he needs a place to stay for an hour or so," Katara said.

Sokka ignored her. "STATE YOUR BUSINESS, FIEND!"

Zuko rubbed the back of his neck. "Um...my uncle doesn't come back until 7:00, and I forgot the keys to my apartment, so I need to stay here for a while, if that's okay with you."

"Of course it's okay with us!" Katara muttered. "It just isn't okay with _Sokka._"

"Hm..likely story, but I still have my suspicions," Sokka said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully and pacing around the doorway, inspecting Zuko.

"Well, uh, if you don't want me here then—"

"OF COURSE WE WANT YOU HERE! DON'T LISTEN TO MY IDIOT OF A BROTHER!" Katara yelled.

"Wait! I didn't approve of him yet!" Sokka whined.

"I DON'T NEED YOUR APPROVAL," Katara roared.

Suddenly, a door opened from across their room. "What is going ON here?" An old man asked. "I can hear yer yellin' all the way from my room! Could you young fellas _kindly_ keep it down for the wify and me? She has a terrible headache at the moment!"

"Yes, we'll try to keep it down. I'm sorry we interrupted you. My brother can be so overprotective sometimes," Katara said with a sweet smile plastered on her face.

"Thank ya," The old man said, and closed the door.

Katara pushed both of the puzzled boys through the door before they could utter another word. When she shut the door, she turned to glare at Sokka. Sokka's eyes grew wide. "IS HE YOUR BOYFRIEND OR SOMETHING?" Sokka yelled.

Katara blushed. "WHAT? No..."

Zuko stared at Sokka with wide eyes.

Sokka ignored his little sister and turned to Zuko. "I have a sword, okay buddy? So you can just back off and—"

"Yes, _beware _of Sokka's _extremely sharp rock!_ OooOoohhh!" Katara said, rolling her eyes.

Sokka stuck his tongue out at his little sister, then slowly backed away. "I got my eyes on you, _Zuko, _I'm always watch—" Sokka tripped on a potted plant. "AH, OW!" Sokka shrieked, followed by several curses. Finally, he left the room.

The two benders looked at each other awkwardly in silence for a few minutes. Then Katara spoke up, "I'm sorry your visit was so...loud..."

Zuko gave her a weak smile and said, "It's alright...he's kind of...funny..."

Katara snorted. "Yeah, okay, sure."

"Hey, at least you don't have a psychopath of a sister," Zuko said.

"You're just lucky that you don't have an overprotective brother that listens to ALL OF YOUR CONVERSATIONS!" Katara bellowed. "YOU HEAR ME SOKKA?"

They heard a scrambling of feet up the stairs, and the slamming of a door. Then a muffled Sokka saying, "Hey sis, can you keep the noise down? I'm trying to read!"

Katara scoffed. "HAH!"

"You know what, Zuko, I think we should go back out into the hallway, and to your room. Maybe the front desk will give you another key?" Katara suggested.

"Oh yeah! Why didn't I think of that?" Zuko exclaimed.

Katara's eyes then popped. "OHMIGOSH WHERE'S TOPH?"

"Um...the little blind girl?" Zuko asked.

"Yes, that's her..." Katara said as she ran up the stairs.

"SOKKA! WHERE'S TOPH?" She yelled.

"Um...I don't really know...oh yeah! She's in your room, taking a nap." Sokka replied, quickly grabbing a book and pretending to read it.

"Oh thank goodness..." Katara sighed, and then she looked at her brother. "Sokka, you're holding that upside-down." Then she left.

Katara found Toph in her room, sound asleep. She breathed a sigh of relief, smiled, and closed the door.

Then she descended the stairs, and found Zuko on the couch, twiddling his thumbs. She laughed and he turned around. "Looks like you're having _loads _of fun," She said sarcastically.

"Well there isn't much to do here!" Zuko said.

"Yeah, so then I guess we better head back to your room..." Katara suggested.

"Good idea," Zuko said.

Then, both Zuko and Katara heard a loud yawn. "Mornin' Sugarqueen, Zuko."

Katara giggled. "It's almost dinner time, Toph."

"Oh great! I'm starving," Toph said.

"Well, bye!" Zuko said awkwardly and left, closing the door behind him.

**A/N: I hope I fixed this chapter to your liking... I'm open to criticism and suggestions, but I am very paranoid, so a compliment would be helpful, too! You guys also seem to like the Katara and Toph moments, so I'll try to put more of that in as well. And in case any of you found it confusing, they paid for ONE extra night, and got TWO free, so basically they got THREE extra days. I'm sorry if I explained that horribly. Oh and the hotel rooms are like mini houses. I also left out some parts, which I hope to put in later.**


	7. Breakfast

**A/N: Hi guys! I read your comments on my last chapter, and I found the criticism to be completely true. Asabella, I agree with you when you said that the chapter was a bit rushed, and I do have a problem with that. The dialogue **_**was **_**really choppy, too. A prank sounds good, but what kind of prank do you have in mind? And to zutarababe, I was going to add numerous complaints from the neighbors, but for some reason I decided not to. I just wanted to stretch his part out a little more, I guess. I really don't know what I was thinking. And thank you, I'm naturally gifted with grammar and spelling skills. (Sometimes.) On to the story!**

Katara woke up the next morning, the sun shining brightly through her window. She sat up, gave a big yawn, and stretched her arms out. Then she fell back into her bed and slept for another hour.

An hour later Katara opened her eyes. This time, when she woke, she dragged herself out of bed, and to the bathroom. A crash snapped her out of her sleepiness. She tried to open the door to the bathroom, and when she realized it was locked, she heard another loud crash.

"WHAT'S GOING ON IN THERE?" Katara called worriedly. "IS THAT YOU, SOKKA?"

"No," came a muffled reply, "It's me, Toph, you know, the one who can't see?"

"Toph? I thought you could see with your feet!" Katara said.

"Well yes, but that's a problem when your feet are covered in bubbles and the bathtub is very slippery, aint it, Sweetheart?" Toph replied sarcastically.

"Well why didn't you ask for help?" Katara asked.

"Hm...MAYBE because the only people that were awake in this room were MEN, and I didn't want to wake you from your much needed beauty sleep!" Toph said. Another crash could be heard from the inside of the bathroom.

"TOPH, I'M COMING IN, ALRIGHT?" Katara yelled.

"Oh _NO, _that's not _at all _what I wanted you to do in the first place!" Toph yelled back.

Katara ignored the Earthbender and bent some water into the keyhole and then froze it. She turned the ice key that she made, and the door opened with a tiny _click. _Katara rushed in, only to slip and fall on the wet floor. She grunted.

"Toph you made such a mess!" Katara said.

"Oh yes, let's worry about the _much bigger _problems such as the _floor _being wet and slippery," Toph said with mock sympathy.

Katara found Toph in the shower, grabbing on to the silver railing attached to the wall, hanging on for dear life. Katara grabbed a towel and handed it to Toph, while looking away she said, "Wrap yourself in this, then hold on to my arm!" Toph followed Katara's instructions, and Katara lifted Toph out of the bathtub before turning off the shower.

"Thanks," Toph breathed.

"It's what I'm here for," Katara said with a smile. "Now you better go change..."

"Right," Toph's face heated up as she asked, "Do you think you can help me with that?"

"Uh, yeah...sure..." Katara said awkwardly.

Katara first gave Toph her undergarments and looked away while she changed. It took a while, but she managed to put them on. Katara then dug through Toph's suitcase and found a shirt for her to wear. She handed it to the Earthbender.

"That's your shirt," Katara said. Toph put it on halfway before getting stuck.

"I'm stuck," Toph muttered from the inside of her shirt. Her head had found the sleeve opening instead of the hole for the head. Katara giggled.

"Here," She said, repositioning her shirt so that Toph's head slid out through the right hole. Finally, after a few moments of whining and cursing, Toph's hair was neatly combed, and she was dressed properly.

Then it was Katara's turn to comb her hair, brush her teeth, and get out of her pajamas and into her dress.

"ARE YOU READY YET, SUGARQUEEN? MY STOMACH IS GIVING ME SPECIAL SIGNALS THAT ARE TELLING ME THAT IT'S TIME TO FUEL UP!" Toph yelled from downstairs.

Katara rolled her eyes and put in her hair loopies. "I'm coming, Toph!" Katara yelled back as soon as she was ready. Katara then made her way to her brother's room. She opened the door and said, "SOKKA GET UP YOU LAZY BUM!"

"Mmghmaybelater," Sokka mumbled.

Katara drew water from the sink and whipped it at her brother. "OW! OKAY I'M UP!" Sokka yelled. "DID YOU _HAVE _TO DO THAT?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"Yes. I hear there's fried chicken in the breakfast room, and if you don't hurry up, it'll be gone!" Katara said.

"WHAT?" Sokka panicked and was ready in less than a minute. He pushed Katara out of his way and ran through the door and down the stairs. Katara followed suit.

They both found Toph in the kitchen, cleaning the dirt from under her nails with a bored expression on her face. "Finally! What took you so long?"

"No time! Must...have...CHICKEN..." Sokka said breathlessly as he dashed out the door.

Toph smirked. "Well we better go, I won't have Snoozles beating me to the breakfast buffet," Toph said, and soon enough she was out the door, too.

Katara stared open-mouthed at the closed door. She turned around to her dad. "Are you ready to go?" she asked.

"Yes, and thank you for waiting, honey," Hakoda replied. Katara smiled, and together, they made their way down the stairs and to the buffet, where Sokka and Toph were already digging into their food. Hakoda went to get himself some food, while Katara went to Toph's and Sokka's table.

"Would it kill you guys to wait for us once in a while?" Katara asked the two exasperatedly.

"Katara, Katara, Katara," Sokka said, putting an arm around his sister's shoulders while shaking his head. "You guys are patient, and you wait. But _meat, _STOPS FOR NO MAN!" Sokka bit a huge chunk of chicken off of the chicken leg.

Katara rolled her eyes. "Oh, Sokka, you've got a little sauce...everywhere," Katara said. Sokka wiped his face with little results. "Oh...forget it!" Sokka gave up, and began to eat again.

"I'm going to get some food, you guys better not go anywhere while I'm gone!" Katara said as she got up.

"Yeah, yeah, Sugarqueen," Toph replied, and waved her off. Katara gave her an offended look, which of course she couldn't see, and left, grumbling.

Zuko was pacing around in his kitchen. His stomach growled. "UGH! Why does it TAKE you SO LONG to brew A SINGLE CUP OF TEA?" He yelled at his uncle.

"Patience, nephew, it takes time for the love to mix with the spices," Iroh sniffed his tea. "Ahh...almost perfect...and...finished!" Iroh savored the hot tea.

Zuko's stomach growled again. "FINISH YOUR TEA AT THE BUFFET! I'M STARVING!" he said impatiently. He took his uncle's arm and dragged him out of the door.

"Careful, nephew! You might spill my precious tea!" Zuko's uncle said worriedly.

"Why bother making tea here when there is already tea at the buffet?" Zuko exclaimed.

"Their tea is nothing more than hot leaf juice!" Iroh replied.

"Uncle, that's what _all _tea is!" Zuko said exasperatedly

"How could a _member _of _my own _family say something so _horrible_?" Iroh said and threw his arm that wasn't holding the teacup up into the air.

**(^^^From the T.V show, I just loved that part so much!^^^)**

Zuko smacked his forehead. Finally they arrived at the buffet and Zuko eagerly grabbed a plate and started piling his plate high with food.

He was about to make his way to the fruit section when he heard a voice.

"Why those ungrateful little..." Katara paused when she bumped into a man. "Zuko! What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Um...I'm staying here, too...remember?" He replied.

"Oh yeah..." Katara blushed because of her stupidity.

Zuko's stomach grumbled, which caused the Waterbender to laugh. "I guess you should go eat, then," Katara said, and left.

Zuko forgot all about getting some fruit and left to find his uncle. When he found his uncle, he was suprised to see his usually jolly uncle sad and disappointed. "What's wrong, uncle?" Zuko asked.

"Well, I was just thinking about this EMPTY TEA CUP!" Iroh said, and sobbed into his hands.

Zuko sighed and handed his uncle a new cup of tea. "Here, I brought some Jasmine tea, I hope you enjoy it, even if it is just 'hot leaf juice'."

His uncle inspected the cup, then hesitantly drank. He cringed. "WHERE'S THE LOVE?" Zuko's uncle exclaimed. Zuko's forehead made contact with the table.

**A/N: This was a fun chapter to write! :) I hope you liked it!**


	8. The Ride of her Life

**A/N: Oh I love you guys and your wonderful, wonderful reviews! You all seem to always manage to put me in a better mood! :) I'm glad you all loved Iroh, he is such a fun character to write! This is probably the first story on fanfiction that I'm going to finish, and the second one I started! If you guys have any suggestions on what I should do with the story, I'd love it if you shared them with me so I can put your ideas into my story, but don't worry, I'll give you the credit that you deserve.**

"Wait, so let me get this straight," Toph began. "You started a petition..._against _vegetarians?"

Sokka raised an eyebrow at his sister. "Yeah, that's right. Did Katara tell you that?"

Toph ignored his question. "Well who did you give it to? And what did he/she say?"

"Um...I gave it to the principal of our school...and he rejected it and thought it was ridiculous. Stupid principal...it wasn't ridiculous...it was for the good of mankind!"

"Yeah, sure Snoozles, and what did Twinkletoes have to say about it?" Toph inquired.

"Oh...well, he had a few..._choice words_ for me...and gave me a whole lecture on how animals are living creatures just like us, and they don't deserve to be killed, blahblahblah, yadayada," Sokka muttered.

"Yeah, and after that he _whooped _your _butt_!" Katara said proudly. Toph snickered and Sokka blushed.

"So how many people did you get to sign your petition?" Toph asked.

"Oh...too many to count," Sokka lied.

Katara scoffed, "Yeah, one or two is more like it..." she trailed off when she saw Zuko get up and start to leave. "Hey guys, I'll meet up with you later, call me if you need me," She said, then left.

"What's her problem?" Sokka asked. Toph shrugged.

"So, I was going to tell you before, but I absolutely _love _your shirt today," Toph said.

"Wow really? That means a lot coming from...aw man! Toph! Why me?"

"Because you make it too easy, Snoozles," Toph replied with a grin.

* * *

"Hey! Zuko!" Katara called as she chased after the scarred firebender. Zuko turned around, and when he saw her, his face flushed.

"Oh...hello..." Zuko said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Well! Who is this pretty young lady?" Zuko's uncle asked with a huge grin plastered on his face.

Zuko turned even redder than before, and Katara blushed a little, too. "Uncle, this is my friend, Katara. Katara, Uncle."

"Hello, it's nice to meet you," Katara said.

"The pleasure's all mine," Iroh replied with a friendly smile. "If you two would excuse me, I will go up to our hotel room and brew some more tea." He winked at his nephew who, by that time, was a deep shade of crimson. Even his ears were burning.

When Iroh left, Katara said, "Your uncle seems like a really nice man."

"Yes, he is," Zuko said. "But I worry about his sanity sometimes," he muttered. "So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Huh?"

"Well, you called me for a reason, right?" Zuko asked.

"Oh! Right. You said we could go to the garden today, remember?" Katara said eagerly.

"Yes, I remember, how could I forget?" Zuko replied.

"Great! Let's go!" Katara dashed off, leaving Zuko running to catch up with her. When they arrived at the gates of the garden, the guard was there again, a big mischievous smile on his face.

"Whaddar you doin' here?" The man growled.

"You told us that today the garden was open," Katara said.

The man's smile broadened. "Oh, sorry lil' lady, but I musta been mistaken. Today is a Monday, and the garden is closed on Mondays, too,"

This time, Katara lost it. She began to unconsciously waterbend the water in the nearby fountain as her arms swung up and down in fury. "WHAT? YOU'RE SUCH A JERK, YOU KNOW THAT? I CAN'T BELIEVE I EVEN BOTHERED TO COME BACK HERE—"

She felt a hand on her shoulder, and let go of the water which sloshed down onto the floor.

Zuko sighed. "Katara, he isn't even worth it." She looked up into his sincere eyes and nodded. Katara narrowed her eyes at the old man, who now quaked in fear. Then she folded her arms and turned around, her nose high in the air.

"You're right. Let's go," Katara said coldly. Then she strode away. Zuko followed, without looking at the old man, who hung his head in shame.

"Are you going back to the hotel?" Zuko asked once the garden was out of sight.

"Yes, then I'm going back to the water park."

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm sorry we couldn't go to the garden," Zuko said.

"It's alright, I didn't really want to go anyway," Katara lied.

"Okay...liar," Zuko said.

"What? I am not a liar!"

"Yes you are. You wanted to go so bad," Zuko teased. But before Katara could say anything, she spotted Toph and Sokka at the entrance of the hotel.

"Toph! Sokka!" Katara called as she ran toward them.

"Katara! Oh, so _this _is who you took off with," Sokka said, eying Zuko suspiciously. Katara blushed and Zuko raised an eyebrow at the Waterbender.

"We got your stuff, no need to thank me," Toph said, shoving her bathing suit and towel into Katara's face.

"Gee...thanks Toph," Katara said. "I guess I'll change there then. Bye Zuko!" She waved as they left. Zuko waved back, but didn't say anything.

* * *

At the hotel, Zuko ascended the stairs to his room, opened the door and greeted his uncle.

He quickly changed into his bathing suit, grabbed everything he needed and said goodbye to his uncle.

"Well, you certainly are in a hurry, Zuko," Iroh commented.

"Why do you say that?" Zuko asked, halfway out the door.

"Because you didn't have time to have some tea with your uncle!" Iroh said, offering him a cup of tea.

"Um...no thanks, uncle," Zuko said, and was out the door.

"WAIT! NEPHEW! COULD YOU GET ME SOME MORE—" the door slammed shut. "Or you can leave," Iroh huffed.

Zuko sprinted down the stairs and pushed his way through the revolving doors. Then he took the bus to the water park. On the bus ride, a little voice said, _Can't wait to see her?_

"I don't know what you're talking about," Zuko said to himself.

_Really? Because you sure seemed in a rush to get to the water park._

"That is because I planned to go there anyway, and it's already almost noon."

_Okay, whatever. You keep telling yourself that._

"Stop that! I have a girlfriend already!"

_You mean the half-dead zombie who feels nothing at all? Oh yes, she's very charming._

"I'm arguing with myself. I must be insane."

_No, you're not insane. But you're almost there._

"You're really annoying, you know that?"

_I'm you, you're me, so... it doesn't bother me._

Zuko smacked his forehead.

* * *

"Hey Toph, I'm going to get some lemonade, okay?" Katara said.

"What? That line is so long!"

"Yeah, but I'm so thirsty!"

"Fine, but I'm going on to another ride. You'll find me over there." Toph pointed to the direction she was going to go.

"Alright, I'll meet you there," Katara said, and quickly joined the line for lemonade.

15 minutes later...

Katara groaned. She was _still _in line! _OH COME ON ALREADY! _She screamed inside her head. _I DON'T KNOW...HOW MUCH LONGER...I CAN STAND...IN THIS HORRIBLE...DREADFUL..._

"How may I help you ma'am?" The cashier lady asked. When Katara didn't reply, she said, "Ma'am?"

Katara snapped out of her thoughts and said, "Oh, sorry, um...I would like one cup of lemonade please!"

"Okay."

* * *

Zuko started out in the wave pool, and then went to the waterslide. He went to almost half the rides, before that annoying voice came back.

_Looking for someone?_

"NO!"

The voice seemed to laugh at his response, and went away.

Just when Zuko was halfway to his destination, his stomach growled. He felt it vibrate, and that was when he suddenly realized that he was hungry.

He searched around for his wallet, for money, but he found nothing. _Oh no...don't tell me I left it at home...no...nonono..._

He kept walking and searching, when he crashed into someone.

Then, some sticky liquid was all over him.

"Euick! What is this?" He said angrily. He heard whoever he bumped into gasp. He looked up.

"Ohmigosh, I'm so sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going and...here...let me get that..."

She tried to clean the lemonade off of his chest with her towel, but failed to clean the stickiness off.

"Don't worry about it. It'll wash off later on," He replied nonchalantly. "Oh and by the way...Hey Katara."

The girl immediately stopped cleaning him, and whipped her head up. "Zuko!" She breathed. "I am really sorry, it's lemonade, and I bet it's all sticky..." She put a finger on his muscular chest and took it off. It made a weird sound and she felt the sticky sugar on her finger. "Ew..."

Zuko laughed. He could still feel where her finger had touched his chest. "It's okay, it'll wash off."

"So you're not mad?" She asked.

"Yes. I am very angry, Katara. How dare you spill lemonade on me," Zuko said in a stern voice.

Katara smirked. She bowed while saying, "I'm sorry Your Highness, I promise it'll never happen again."

Zuko chuckled. "So this time Toph didn't come?" He asked.

Katara's smile faded. "Oh no...Toph...I kept her waiting too long..." She took off and left Zuko standing there, puzzled.

"Wait...Katara!" He called, and chased after her.

* * *

"What is taking her so long?" Toph asked herself. "Ah, well I better go find her then." She left to the lemonade stand.

However, when she got there, Katara was gone.

_Oh she better not have left without me_, Toph thought. _Ah, well I guess I better go have some fun in the meantime..._

* * *

"WHERE IS SHE?" Katara shouted in frustration. She couldn't have lost her. Every step she took, she called the little Earthbender's name. "Toph? Toph? Toph?" But each time, no one answered. "Oh

no...where is she..."

Katara searched high and low, left and right, but yet she couldn't find Toph. Everywhere Katara was, Toph wasn't.

_Maybe if I just stay in one place..._ Katara thought. So she stood in one place for about five minutes, then became overwhelmed in anxiety. She started searching again.

Hours were passing by, but there was no sign of Toph.

* * *

She somehow managed to lose him. Zuko had been chasing her, and she lost him in a crowd. Zuko groaned.

_Why were you chasing her anyway?_

"Oh no...not you...right now is _not _the time, okay?"

_Hey, Mr. Bossy, I come back when I want to._

"I don't have time for you..."

_Then _make _time._

"No thanks."

_Fine then, I'll leave._

"Thank goodness."

_You're a jerk._

"I know."

Then the voice was gone.

* * *

Her breath was quick and shallow. _Where is she? Where did she go? This is all my fault!_ Katara thought. Her head turned left, then right, then left, then right. _This is hopeless!_

She sat down on a bench and started to cry. People were starting to stare, but she really didn't care.

After a few minutes, she wiped her eyes, and stood up to search again. Her eyes hurt and she felt light headed, but she needed to find Toph. Then, in the distance, she heard a familiar "WAAAHHHOOOOOOOOOOO!" and decided to follow it. When the ride came to an end, she found Toph, drenched in water.

"TOPH!" Katara yelled. She was both relieved and seething.

"So. This is where you've been, huh? ON A RIDE while I cried my eyes out for you!" Katara said angrily.

"I tried to find you, too! I just thought you left me so...I decided to have some fun," The Earthbender shrugged.

"Do you think searching for you was _FUN _for me? Because it WASN'T! You know, I SHOULD'VE left you here! You deserve it!"

Toph looked into what she hoped were Katara's eyes. "Katara. I'm sorry. I really am."

Katara was shocked. Toph never called her Katara. Ever. Now she knew that she was completely serious. She smiled. "Okay. But never scare me like that again."

"Alright, I promise," Toph said.

Then Katara remembered something. "Toph! I just remembered! I have _coupons! _For _funnel cakes!_"

Toph cocked her head. "I think you've gone a bit wacky, Sweetness."

Katara laughed. "Maybe just a little."

* * *

At the little cafe restaurant place, Katara sat with Toph at a small round table, with a single light dangling above them. They ate their fried funnel cakes that were topped with powdered sugar.

"Ugh...I can't take any more of this," Katara groaned.

"What's the matter, Sweetness? Can't handle the sweetness?" Toph asked with a grin.

"Too much..." Her stomach ached. She felt like vomiting.

* * *

_Oh man...I still haven't eaten..._ Zuko thought as he pushed the door to the cafe open. His stomach was churning, trying to devour something that wasn't there. As soon as he entered, he found Katara, talking with Toph. He walked over to them and stole some of their funnel cake.

"HEY!" Toph shouted.

"I am soo hungry..." Zuko said as he chewed the fried cake. _Food...Finally..._

"I don't care how hungry you are! This is mine!" Toph growled.

"Aw...please? Can I have some?" Zuko plead.

"Get down on your knees and beg for it," Toph demanded.

"What?" Zuko asked, bewildered.

"You heard me, you thief!" Toph said. "Grovel for it!"

"Zuko, don't," Katara said, holding her stomach. "I still have another coupon. I can buy you another one."

"Seriously? Thanks!" Zuko exclaimed thankfully.

Toph stuck her tongue out at him. "I'm taking some of yours!" She said.

"But..."

"No buts, Jerkface, you _owe _me!" Toph said stubbornly.

Zuko sighed. She was just like that annoying little voice in his head. There was no use arguing with her. "Fine."

When Katara came back with another funnel cake, Zuko's mouth watered.

"Here's your food. Now keep it away from me, the smell nauseates me."

"Okay...Are you okay? Do you need some water?" Zuko asked worriedly.

"No, I'm fine. Really," Katara lied.

Zuko shrugged and devoured his cake.

Afterwards, they threw out their plates and headed for another ride. Toph insisted on riding this huge rollercoaster ride that was way too high for Katara's liking.

"Come on, you spineless wimp! Even Jerkface here is man enough to ride it!" Toph pleaded.

"Fine..." Katara said reluctantly.

When they finally got ready for the ride, Katara was having second thoughts about taking it.

"I don't think I'm ready for this..." Katara said, her voice shook.

"Don't worry," Zuko said. "Toph will be on your right, and I'll be on your left. It's perfectly safe. And we won't even be riding in the front."

"We won't?" Toph said disappointedly.

"No, what's the point? You can't see it anyway..." Zuko said.

"Thanks for pointing that out, Jerkface," Toph muttered.

Zuko smiled sheepishly. "Anyway, there's nothing to worry about, Katara, and it's too late to turn back now," Zuko said as they began to rise.

"Oh my...damn that's high..." Katara whispered.

At the peak of the slope, Katara could've sworn that the cart that they were riding in rocked a little before abruptly speeding down. Her stomach dropped, and she closed her eyes. She grabbed both Toph and Zuko's arms.

Toph shrugged her off, and put her hands in the air. "WAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOO!" She screamed with delight.

"No...nonono...please be over..." Katara prayed.

She gripped Zuko's arm with both hands, and even tighter than before. They started to rise again...and then they fell, repeating this process about three times before turning sharply and falling one last time, the steepest drop, and Katara wrapped her both her arms around Zuko's and threw up a little in her mouth.

Finally, they crashed into the water, and got soaked to the bone. Once they got off, Katara and Toph shouted in unison, "THAT...WAS...TERRIBLE/AWESOME!"


	9. Mysterious Visitor

**A/N: Humdeedumdedum…I'm in a good mood today, and I decided that I want to write another chapter! Enjoy!**

The trio was sitting at their café table again.

"Oh wow…" Katara said, not feeling too good, "I may never be able to swallow anything ever again."

"Aw c'mon Sweetness, it wasn't that bad," said Toph.

"I'm wet," Zuko muttered.

"That was the point, Jerkface," Toph replied.

"I am soaked. Drenched. Who knew water could hurt so much?" Zuko complained.

Katara punched his arm. "Oh stop whining."

Zuko smiled then faked a pout. "But I'm cold!"

"You're a _firebender. _Mean anything to you?"

"Hm…never occurred to me." He closed his eyes, and Katara watched the water turn to steam, and in a matter of seconds, he was perfectly dry.

"Hey Sugarqueen, you should've felt your heartbeat on that ride! It was pounding so fast…" Toph laughed. "I'm surprised you didn't have a heart attack!"

Zuko chuckled, "Yeah, and you were gripping my arm way too tightly…I think you left a bruise!"

"Aw…that's so sweet…" Toph teased.

"Hey! I was scared…" Katara said defensively, but she blushed anyway.

"Do you have any more coupons for funnel cakes?" Zuko asked, his stomach grumbling.

"Why? So you can steal it again?" Toph asked.

"No, I'm just hungry…" Zuko replied.

"No way, I'm sorry, but my stomach can not handle anymore…disturbances," Katara said.

"But my stomach is going to eat itself!" Zuko whined.

"I don't care! I think mine died already!" Katara said, holding her stomach and groaning.

"Fine, let me starve," Zuko huffed.

"I will," Katara said stubbornly.

"You owe me for spilling lemonade on me," Zuko said.

Katara laughed. "It was an accident, I apologized, and it washed off already!" She placed a finger on his chest, took it off, and found that the stickiness was gone.

"HAH!" Katara shouted victoriously, shoving her perfectly sticky-free finger in his face.

Zuko laughed. They both didn't notice the little Earthbender leaning back in her chair, "watching" their little battle with amusement. She smiled.

"It seems like you two have become really good friends in just about two days," Toph remarked.

Katara tilted her head and looked from the Earthbender to the Firebender. "Yeah, I guess," she replied.

"Excuse me, the park is about to close, I'm going to have to ask you to leave immediately," a female voice said from behind them.

"Oh, okay," Katara said, and all three of them stood. But before they could leave, the lady blocked their path.

"Ahem. Do you _know _who I am?" She said, putting her hands on her hips.

Katara cocked her head, contemplating the question.

"You mean you don't remember?" the woman asked, faking an offended look.

Katara gasped. "Ohmigosh…" she whispered.

**A/N: Who do you think it is? Please review! ****J**


	10. Suki

**A/N: Thank you ****Anonymous I Think**** for reviewing all my chapters! (Yes I am totally obsessed with reviews) And I know the last chapter was so disappointingly short, but I hope this one makes up for it! Even though this one probably will turn out short, too. And the mysterious lady is revealed! **

"Suki!" Katara giggled with delight. "You work here?"

Suki pointed to her badge, "Assistant Manager, actually. Originally, there wasn't an assistant manager position, but the boss was so happy with my work, he promoted me! I'm the first Assistant Manager ever in this water park!" Suki's eyes wandered onto Zuko, and her eyebrows raised. "Are you gonna introduce me to your new friend, Kit Kat?"

Toph's eyebrows shot up. "_Kit Kat? _I thought _I _was the only one who was allowed to make nicknames!" Toph said, offended.

Suki laughed. "Sorry Toph. If it makes you feel better, Kit Kat is the only nickname I've come up with. Twinkletoes and Snoozles are pure genius!"

Toph beamed. "Apology accepted. Hey, I've even come up with a nickname for Zuko over here, too," she jabbed a thumb in his direction. "Say hello to Jerkface!" the little Earthbender said proudly.

"Wow Toph…that's something special…" Suki giggled. "So you're name is Zuko, huh? Nice to meet you." She stuck out a hand, and expected him to shake it. Zuko looked at it reluctantly, but shook it anyway.

"So nice to meet you," Zuko said sarcastically.

"Oh, sarcastic fellow, now aren't you? We'll get along just fine," Suki replied, clearly amused.

Katara smiled. "Suki, guess what?"

"What?"

"Sokka's in town, too," she teased.

Suki blushed. "Th-that's nice t-to know, Kat…"

Katara wiggled her eyebrows, and they both burst out laughing.

Suki checked her watch. "Guess I'd better be off then, see ya later, guys!" She said, and waved.

"Wait, we'll go together!" Katara suggested.

"Hate to break it to ya, kid, but you don't have your driver's license," Suki said.

"Oh, and _you _do?" Katara asked.

"I take the bus," Suki replied.

"So do we, how do you think we got here?" Katara said. "Now, let's go!" **(this has become kind of like her catch phrase, don't you think?)**

Suki gave in, and shrugged. Toph and Zuko followed, Zuko with his arms crossed. When they got onto the bus, Suki and Katara were engrossed in their conversation, and left Toph to talk to Zuko. Their conversation was much more awkward.

"So…you're a firebender, huh?" Toph asked, feeling stupid.

"Yeah. And you're blind," Zuko stated.

"Thanks, Jerkface," Toph replied.

"Anytime."

Toph punched his arm, receiving a satisfying grunt from Zuko. "Ouch…" he mumbled.

"Man up you sissy," Toph said, laughing.

The bus came to a halt, and all four of them got off. They headed for the hotel, and Suki had all of Katara's attention the whole way there, much to Zuko's disappointment.

They stopped at the door, and Zuko said, "Well, I better get back to my room." He paused for any objections, but they had none.

"Bye Zuko!" Katara and Suki said in unison. "See ya, Jerkface," Toph said.

He waved and hurried up the stairs.

When they came to Katara's room, Suki said, "I guess I'll be going then."

"Are you kidding me? This is the best part," Katara replied. "You're staying."

Suki sighed. "Okay…" Something about Katara's tone worried her. After a few moments, Suki asked, "Are you going to open the door?"

"Don't have to," Katara replied simply.

"Why…"

"SOKKA!" Katara yelled.

The door flew open, and Sokka's mouth was open, and his finger was pointed at his sister, ready to yell, when his eyes settled on his girlfriend. His jaw dropped even further, and his eyebrows shot up.

"SUKI!" He slammed the door. The three girls stood there, confused. Then the door opened again, and Sokka emerged, looking like he just combed his hair. He even put on a nicer looking shirt, and he flexed his "muscles".

Katara sniffed the air around her. "Are you wearing…cologne?" She asked in disbelief.

Sokka ignored her. "Come in," He said, and winked at Suki. She giggled. Katara rolled her eyes, but before Sokka could shut the door on her, she pushed it open, and she and Toph slipped in.

"Can't get rid of me that easy," Katara said, sticking a tongue out at her brother.

He scowled, but when he turned his attention back to Suki, he put on his dazzling smile again.

Katara plopped down on the couch and sighed. "This is going to be a long night."

**A/N: Sorry to disappoint all those Sukka fans out there, but you're just going to have to imagine what happened between Suki and Sokka. (Hakoda probably kicked Suki out after dinner, though) My next chapter will probably be more interesting, and don't forget to review! That friendly little button down there doesn't bite! Go ahead! Click it!**


	11. Breakfast 2

**A/N: Last day in the water park! Aw… However, this is not the last chapter in the story. I hope you enjoyed your Independence Day!**

Katara woke up to find herself on the couch. _Have I been here for the whole night? _she wondered. She yawned and stretched.

"Thank goodness, Sugarqueen, I assumed you died on the couch last night," Toph said.

"Toph? How come you're up so early?" Katara said in between yawns.

"Me? Up early? You've gotta be kidding. It's already almost lunch!" Toph exclaimed.

Katara jolted up. "Really? This is our last day, and you let me _sleep in_?" Her stomach growled. "And miss breakfast?" she added.

"Hey, I only woke up an hour ago," Toph replied.

Katara groaned. "So where are we going today?"

"Not the water park?" Toph suggested. She was sick and tired of that place.

"Yeah, our tickets expired anyway," Katara replied.

"Why don't you discuss it over breakfast?" Hakoda said, pushing them out the door.

"Breakfast? Toph said it was almost lunch."

"Yeah, but they still have brunch," Hakoda answered, and shut them out.

Katara folded her arms. "Why was he so pushy?" She grumbled to herself.

Toph shrugged. "But I thought you wanted to eat, Sweetness."

"I do…" She replied, and they both hurried down the stairs.

"UNCLE!" Zuko roared.

"I'm done, I'm done," His uncle assured him, balancing four teacups in his hands.

Zuko stared at him. "Why…you know what, I'm not even going to ask."

"Nephew, be a dear and open the door for me, please," Iroh asked politely.

Zuko groaned, and put on a huge fake smile. "After you, uncle."

"Why thank you," His uncle answered, ignoring his nephew's sarcasm. As soon as he stepped out of the door, Zuko followed and slammed the door behind him. The sound startled his uncle, and he spilled half a cup of tea on the floor.

He glared at Zuko. "My own nephew…such a treacherous deed…" His uncle shook his head in dismay.

"I'm sorry, uncle! Let me help you carry-"

"NO!" He yelled. Snatching the teacup from his nephew's hand. "My poor preciousness…I won't let him harm you…" Iroh soothed his four teacups as he walked down the stairs, leaving Zuko to stare after his uncle in disbelief. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to convince himself that his uncle was not a crazy loon, and that he just has…strong feelings for…tea. He descended the stairs, mumbling to himself.

He crashed into someone, and lemonade was all over his shirt. _Not again,_ he groaned to himself.

"OKAY, REALLY?" Zuko heard a girl yell. "WHY IS IT THAT _EVERY TIME _I GET LEMONADE, IT ENDS UP ON SOMEONE? FIRST ZUKO, AND NOW-" She looked up and gasped. "Zuko again…" She squeaked.

He chuckled. "Yeah Katara, why is it that _every time _you get lemonade, it ends up on me?"

Her face flushed. "Uh…I…um…let me get that…" she bent the lemonade from his shirt.

"And why couldn't you have done that the first time?" Zuko asked, raising an amused eyebrow.

Katara blushed an even darker shade of red. "Uh…" She cursed herself for sounding like an idiot.

He laughed. "I'm kidding."

She sighed in relief, and said, "Right."

Zuko could see his uncle gesturing to him wildly. He tilted his head, puzzled. _What? _He mouthed.

Katara looked up at him. "Is everything alright?" She asked slowly.

"Yeah…hold on…I think my uncle might be having a muscle spasm…" Zuko said absent-mindedly, and left to tend to his uncle.

Katara gave him a look of confusion before she shrugged it off. She left to join Toph. She had a grin on her face.

"What?" Katara asked.

"Oh…nothing," Toph lied, pretending to be innocent. She had felt Katara's heart race when she looked up at Zuko, and Toph felt Zuko's leap when he realized it was Katara he had bumped into. "So, looks like you and Zuko are becoming great friends," Toph remarked.

"Uh…yeah…" Katara answered, confused.

Toph's smile grew wider when she felt Katara's heart jump at the sound of his name. "You're like best friends, and it's been, like, two days!" she exclaimed.

Katara nodded slowly, and when she realized Toph couldn't see it she said, "Yeah, I guess…" she stood up abruptly. "I'm going to get some more food."

"You do that, Sugarqueen," Toph said. "You do that."

"What is she getting at…" Katara mumbled to herself. "Stupid confusing Earthbenders…"

"Uncle, is something wrong?" Zuko asked.

"No, nothing nephew. It's just I saw you talking to that pretty girl again," Zuko blushed at that. "And I want you to invite her to my tea shop today."

"Um…sure," Zuko agreed, even though it sounded more like a question than a definite response.

"Great! I'll meet you all there today for lunch, and for now, I need to go back. I have run low on my tea supplies!" He said, gesturing at his three empty tea cups, and the one half-empty teacup in his hand.

"Alright. We'll meet you there around noon."

His uncle said nothing and left, taking his four teacups with him.

Zuko looked at Katara, who got up and left to get some more food. She didn't seem to be in a very good mood. He had a feeling that asking her to come to his uncle's tea shop would be very awkward. He sighed and approached her anyway.

"Um…hey, Katara!" he called. She looked up at him, and stopped her grumbling. She smiled.

"Yes?"

"I was…um…wondering…if…" her bright blue eyes were making it hard to concentrate. "You…couldhavelunchwithmeatmyuncle'steashop." He said, his words tumbling out all at once. He cursed himself. The ability to talk to girls always came easy to him, so why is _she _making it so hard?

"Pardon?" She asked, confused.

"Er…if you…" She raised her eyebrows and nodded her head slowly, as if to urge him to continue. "and your friend," He added, just to be safe. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea, after all, he _did _already have a girlfriend. "could come…to my uncle's tea shop, to have tea with us?" he finally forced out, stumbling on some of the words. Although he and Katara didn't see it, Toph was snickering at his awkwardness from behind them. _Looks like Jerkface has a crush on Sugarqueen! _she told herself. _Can you _be _more obvious?_

Zuko cringed, and braced himself for her answer. "Sure, that sounds like fun."

_What? Did she just say…yes? _"Uh…okay…great…" He said, still unsure if he heard her right.

"Alright, what time?" She asked.

"Around noon, meet us at the Jasmine Dragon, or right outside the hotel, which ever one you prefer," Zuko answered.

"Okay, see you then!" She said happily, and walked away.

_That. Was so. Easy. _He thought, berating himself for thinking otherwise. A voice inside his head snickered at him.

_You're such an idiot, _it said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Zuko replied.

_You are so in love with her._

Despite himself, he blushed. "I am not."

The voice ignored him. _And you couldn't have made it any more obvious, either._

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked.

_Seriously, you could've just written "MARRY ME" on your forehead. I bet she's laughing at you right now._

"She is not!" Zuko said defensively, but just in case, he turned around to check. She was laughing, but she didn't look at him. His face flushed. _Was she really laughing at _me_? _He could've sworn he heard the voice laugh at him, and fade away. He sighed and rubbed his temples. He was not in love. He barely knew her! Sure she's pretty and all… No. He didn't like her. He has a girlfriend. A loyal girlfriend who wouldn't give him away for the world, and he wouldn't betray her, either. He didn't like her, he didn't, he didn't. But no matter what he tried to tell himself, he always came back to the possibility. _Maybe just a little crush? No. Never. But maybe…_

**A/N: Well there you go! Sorry I broke my daily updating record…I just got a bit…sidetracked. Maybe I wouldn't be so distracted if you guys reviewed! Hm? Hm? How about it?**


	12. Lunch

**A/N: To Rohain Tahquil: I included Mai because I wanted Zuko to be in denial (about him liking Katara), and I also wanted Katara to be extremely jealous! :) I am so sorry I didn't post earlier, I guess I got caught up drawing. Yeah I drew a Zutara pic to go along with this story! Just go to deviantart and search Zutara Water Park, and you'll see it. My username is moonlightartist66. Obviously. ****I hope you like it...It's the scene on the roller coaster, and I got lazy and decided not to draw the whole entire roller coaster, just the part that they were on. Tell me what you think!**

Katara checked her watch for the hundredth time that day. "Where is he?"

They were standing at the entrance of the hotel, and Katara was getting impatient. "We've been waiting for twenty minutes! Where is he?" She was pacing around frantically.

"Sugarqueen, would you kindly SIT DOWN?" Toph yelled. She was sitting on the bottom step of the staircase that led to the front doors of the hotel.

Katara ignored her. "He said he'd meet us here at noon. IT'S NOON ALREADY!"

"And how long has it been noon, Sweetness?" Toph asked.

Katara checked her watch. "Three minutes..."

Toph groaned. "So you got us here twenty minutes early for nothing. Thanks a lot."

"That is _not _the point," Katara said. "He is three minutes late, and that is unforgivable!" The door opened, and Katara whipped her head around to see who it was. She was a bit disappointed when it was just her brother.

Toph snickered. "Expecting someone else, Sweetness? Judging on how hard your heart was pumping I'd say you were..."

"That is still _not _the point," Katara said, blushing. She turned to Sokka. "What are you doing here? I thought you said you weren't coming."

"I wasn't. Dad told me to tell you that we're leaving early today," Sokka replied.

"What? Why?" She asked, hoping that didn't mean they were canceling lunch.

"Relax Katara, dad said we're still eating here, if that's what you're thinking." Katara blushed again. Was she that predictable? "We're leaving right after lunch, around 1:30. He says it's because he forgot to tell Toph's parents about our extended stay or something."

Toph abruptly stood up. "He _forgot _to _tell _my _parents._" She repeated, emphasizing every other word. "Do you _know _that my parents are going to kill me, and maybe even your dad for not telling them? Do you _know_ that they are probably scouring the _entire planet _for me, wondering where the hell I am?" She felt her stomach knot up. "They're going to lock me up for eternity!"

"He says he's really sorry, and he's on the phone with them right now. By the looks of it, dad was pretty stressed out," Sokka said.

Toph buried her face in her hands. "Great. This is just wonderful."

Right at that moment, Zuko walked in.

"Of all the moments you choose to walk in on, this is one of the worst," Katara said, crossing her arms and smirking.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Sorry I'm a bit late…"

Katara bit back an insult when her stomach grumbled. "I'll accept your apology as soon as you take me to lunch."

"Uh, Katara? Don't you mean _us?_" Sokka interrupted.

"Mmhm. As long as I get some food," She cursed herself, realizing she sounded a lot like Sokka at the moment.

Toph snorted, her panic gone. "Yeah, don't want to keep her waiting or else she gets super _extra _feisty."

"Hey! I'm not feisty!" She said defensively. Putting her hands on her hips.

"Sure, Sweetness, whatever makes ya happy. Now lets go eat. I'm starving!" She pushed her way past Katara and her brother, and looked up at Zuko. "Lead on, Jerkface!"

He chuckled and led the way. At the entrance of the Jasmine Dragon, he said to Katara and Toph with a big flourish, "This way, ladies." Katara giggled and walked inside, while Toph punched his arm, but followed suit. Sokka stood there with his arms crossed. Zuko raised an eyebrow and added, "You too, Sokka." Sokka thanked him and entered, while Zuko rolled his eyes.

Katara was worrying about not knowing what to order, but it turns out that Iroh set up a table with tea and food steaming hot, and ready to eat. Iroh smiled at them, and Katara's mouth watered.

Toph scrunched her nose in disgust. "Guys, I can hear your stomachs grumbling, and I can feel them vibrating…It's really weird and kind of nasty."

Katara almost stuck out her tongue in response, but decided not to, because after all, Toph is blind. "I'm just really hungry! My stomach can't help itself if it's empty!" Katara said defensively.

"Well then lets eat! Your stomach grumbling is starting to make me lose my appetite."

They all dug in, Sokka and Katara stuffing themselves like a turkey on Thanksgiving. **(Okay, so that wasn't the best simile…) **After they ate their fill, Katara felt like she was about to explode. She could've sworn that her belly was bulging out a little, but that might've just been her imagination.

"Desert!" Iroh announced, setting a plate full of pastries on their table. Katara groaned. The pastries looked so good…but she was so stuffed… She grabbed one anyway and bit into it.

"Mmm…" She said, savoring the bite. It was flaky, and in the middle there was cream, cold, but very…creamy. The sweet inside blended perfectly with the flaky outside, and no matter how much her stomach protested, she kept biting into the desert, each bite just as good, or even better, than the last. **(Wrote this part after breakfast…but now I'm hungry again…) **She closed her eyes and finished her last bite. After the pastry was finished, she took a sip of her tea, which immediately warmed her insides. Trickling down her throat and heating up her stomach, it felt so good, especially after the cold creamy desert.

Sokka, on the other hand, didn't really savor the food like Katara. All he cared about was tasting as much food as he could. He would gobble down the rest if it was good, and toss aside the food that didn't satisfy him. He also ate quite noisily, chewing with his mouth open, showing the world how well he could mash up his food with his teeth. This totally disgusted Katara, and she had to remind him many times to close his mouth while he ate. Once, he was talking to Katara while eating some sort of meat, and he accidentally spat something onto her cheek. Katara completely lost it and flicked him hard on the forehead. She also yelled a few choice words at him and smacked him upside the head with his own tea. Sokka tried to defend himself with his hands, which were greasy and sticky, and she smacked him even harder. He knew bruises would probably form later on. Grumbling to himself, Sokka never made the mistake of talking with his mouth full again.

Toph wasn't as ravenous as the two siblings, but she ate almost everything in sight. The food tasted so good, and she didn't really know what she was grabbing half of the time, but everything was delicious so it didn't matter.

Zuko was probably the only one who ate in a civilized manner, and watched the three around him with amusement.

"Uh…so I'll uh…pay the bill now…" Zuko said, making sure everyone was done.

"Yeah, sure buddy," Sokka agreed, patting him on the back.

"Nephew, there is no need to pay me, the meal was on the house," Iroh said pleasantly.

"Actually, I think they just devoured half of your food supply, so I think I should pay…" Zuko replied, taking out a few gold pieces.

Iroh took a look at all the plates of food that the group managed to eat. He nodded, "I think you are right."

Katara and Sokka smiled sheepishly, and thanked him for the wonderful lunch. Just then, Hakoda walked in.

"We need to go. Now."

**A/N: Review! Sorry for the wait, I'll update quicker next time. Review! Hmm…I think I may be experiencing a bit of a block… Review! Maybe it'll help if you guys…REVIEW! ****J**


	13. Leaving

**A/N: Next chapter! I apologize for not updating sooner...yeah I'm mean like that. I saw A:TLA, the movie, and it wasn't that great. I expected it to be really terrible, but it wasn't too bad either. The effects were pretty good, but they had the names all wrong. Sorry I haven't updated in a while…I'm starting to get busier! I have this story crudely planned out and it's getting way longer as I add twists and details.**

**To smile: I will add Mai later on, but she will be more heartless than she was in the series.**

Katara stood up. "Why?"

"Because my parents probably threatened to call the cops on him, that's why," Toph grumbled.

Katara stared at them with her mouth open. She knew she should've been worried about her father being arrested, but she couldn't help think of Zuko. _What if I never see him again? _She asked herself. She quickly stole a glance at him, but he seemed impassive which highly irritated and slightly saddened her.

"Don't go…" Iroh began, and they all turned to look at him. "…without your fortune cookies!" he finished, bringing out a plate of fortune cookies and flashing a big smile. On the plate there were three cookies wrapped in plastic.

"But there are only three!" Sokka exclaimed. "One of us isn't going to get one." He looked around before saying, "I vote Katara gives hers up!"

Katara glared at her brother, who merely shrugged in response, and grabbed a fortune cookie.

"Don't worry, I have yours," Zuko said, handing her a fortune cookie. Katara smiled and thanked him, but didn't open it. She was slightly confused as to why _Zuko _had _her _cookie. She shrugged it off, and started to worry again.

Hakoda checked his watch. "We really need to move it," He said urgently. Katara's heart sank a little further.

They all thanked Iroh and Zuko for a wonderful meal, and said their goodbye's. Katara tried not to seem too disappointed as she bid a farewell to Zuko. Then they all hurried to the car, where everyone toppled in, and having packed up everything earlier, they left.

In the car, they all opened their fortune cookies. Sokka was the first to open his.

"What does it say?" Katara asked, as Sokka scowled at the cookie.

"Nothing. Fortune cookies are liars anyway," He replied, tossing the fortune aside.

Katara caught it, and snickered when she read it. "Just because it's true…"

Sokka glared at her. "It is not true!"

Toph glared at both of them. "What does it say?" she yelled, waving her hands over her unseeing eyes.

"Oh, sorry Toph," Katara apologized. "It says, 'Your future is full of anguish and struggle, most of it, self inflicted.'" **((Remember Aunt Wu?))**

While Sokka grumbled to himself, Toph snorted and said, "Hah that cookie really knows what it's talkin' about, Snoozles! Don't question the cookie."

Sokka waved her comment away. "Yeah, yeah, what does yours say?"

"Oh, I don't know, let me put on my reading glasses first," Toph replied sarcastically. Sokka blushed, and opened her fortune cookie for her.

"'Answer what your heart prompts you.'" Sokka scratched his head. "What does that mean?"

Toph shrugged. "I hate when they give stinky love advice like that. I have no idea what the hell that means."

Meanwhile, Katara stared at the cookie in her hand. Unlike the others', it wasn't wrapped in plastic, and it looked slightly darker than theirs, too.

Sokka saw his sister staring at her fortune cookie, and said, "Well are you going to open it, or just look at it all day?"

Katara snapped out of her trance, and absentmindedly cracked open the cookie. She pulled the two halves apart, until the fortune rested in her palm.

"Are you going to eat that?" Sokka asked, looking at the broken cookie. Katara raised an eyebrow, but handed the cookie to her brother.

Sokka bit into it. It was crunchier and sweeter than his cookie. "Not fair!" He said in between chews. "Yours tastes much better than mine!"

"Can I try some?" Toph asked, holding out her hand.

"Sure," Sokka said reluctantly, and dropped a piece in her palm.

Toph chewed it slowly, and tilted her head to the side. After fully tasting the cookie, she swallowed and said, "Yeah, this cookie is homemade, unlike ours, which were store-bought." Of course Toph would know, her parents had hired the best chefs in the world to make things for her, fortune cookies being one of them. After a while, she added, "I wonder why yours is different…"

Katara blinked. "Yeah…I wonder…" She said to herself, staring at the blank piece of paper in her hand. There were no "daily numbers" or "lotto six 's" on this side. She flipped it over, and gasped. Zuko had given her his email! And right beside his email, were three letters. KIT. _Keep in touch!_ She knew what it meant, since some of her friends had signed her yearbook with the same acronym. She smiled and squirmed in her seat. She had to try hard not to squeal. She glanced at it again, and felt another rush of warmth. It's so weird how just a little slip of paper could bring her so much happiness. Carefully, Katara folded up the "fortune" and slid it into her pocket.

"So? What does it say?" Sokka asked, munching on his cookie. Toph wanted to throw up. The way Sokka crunched right into her ear was nausiating and infuriating.

""Something about peace and tranquility," Katara lied to her brother. "You're right, Sokka, fortunes are bogus."

"Would it kill you to keep your mouth closed while you chew?" Toph hissed.

Sokka was speechless. He was so shocked that he ignored Toph's comment, which earned him an elbow in the ribs. For once, his sister agreed with him, which made him happy and not suspicious at all. He didn't continue to question her, because for once in his life, he was right. Or so, that's what he thought.

Toph wasn't an idiot. She knew Katara was lying. From the way her breath caught in her throat and the way her heart raced, she could tell that it was probably some cheesy love fortune, or, even better, some kind of secret message from _Zuko. _Heck, that girl was such a terrible liar, only a fool would believe her. Said fool happened to be sitting right next to her, trying to think of a reason Katara would agree with him. Toph rolled her eyes. And to think, _she _was the blind one.

Katara was a little hyper now. All her sadness was replaced by excitement. _So this is why he was emotionless? Because he knew we would be able to contact each other! _Katara couldn't wait to email him. She only looked at it twice, but she was able to memorize his email in a heartbeat. Right now, she felt on top of the world. Her heart sank a little when she knew that she wouldn't see him again, but at least she had some way of contacting him. And that was good enough for her.

**A/N: Okay...This chapter didn't come out as good as I hoped it would, but I'm kind of facing a block for this story at the moment. Sorry for the wait, too. I'm getting busier right now, and I'm going on vacation on Saturday, so this is probably the last chapter I'm getting in before I leave. **

**Remember to review! (My peppiness is being drained at the moment, so a good review would be nice.)**


	14. Waiting

**A/N: Thanks so much for your patience guys! I'm back from my vacation, and I'm ready to write. You know my wifi crashed right when we came back? Doesn't that stink? Ah, well we fixed it, so all's well that ends well. I think my writer's block is totally gone now and I can thank you guys for that. I love all of your reviews, they are all very much appreciated, and I love your opinions. **

Katara groaned to the roof of the car. They had driven for more than three hours, due to a flat tire, and now they were parked right outside of the Bei Fong estate. Hakoda was, and still is arguing with Toph's parents. They had been bickering for about four hours already, and Sokka fell asleep for two of them. He didn't seem to mind, but Katara was sick of it. Most of the neighbors were out of town, and thank goodness for that, but the neighbors that were disturbed glared at the parents and closed their curtains angrily. The two male parents were so loud, that Katara could hear them yell from inside the car.

"You don't understand! I fo—" Hakoda started.

"I _understand _that you had our daughter for three days more than you told us! We can-no, we _will _sue for this!" Toph's dad shouted.

"I JUST FORGOT TO CALL!" Hakoda roared.

"That is no excuse—"

"DAD!" Toph interjected. "If I was in any _real _trouble, I wouldn't be back right now! _And _ he wouldn't have answered your phone call!"

"Maybe he's just dense..."

"_MAYBE _you need to let your daughter have a life! You keep her locked up all the time and treat her like a delicate daisy, but when in reality, she's the toughest little girl I have ever met!"

Toph "looked" at Hakoda with pride and happiness, while her dad was speechless.

"I...I...I LOVE HER!" He spluttered. "NEVER SET FOOT IN THIS HOUSEHOLD AGAIN!" He yelled, slamming the door in Hakoda's face.

"OHO! DON'T WORRY! I'M NOT COMING BACK FOR A LOOOONG TIME!" Hakoda yelled back as he stormed back to his car.

He climbed into the car, and slammed his car door. For a while, Hakoda just sat there, breathing heavily. Then, after what seemed like forever to Katara, he turned to the kids in the backseat and said, "So what do you want for dinner?" He plastered a very fake smile on his face.

At first, the two of them had nothing to say, and stared at their dad. Then, after they processed what he had said, Sokka suggested, "CHICK-FIL-A!"

Hakoda nodded his agreement.

"W-what? That restaurant is like an HOUR away from here!" Katara stuttered.

"Anything to get as far away from this place as possible..." Hakoda muttered.

Katara groaned. _Awesome. Even more time wasted. I just hope I don't keep Zuko waiting for too long._

OoOoOoOoO

That evening, Zuko sat in front of his laptop, waiting for her to respond. She didn't. So he decided to answer all the rest of his emails. He scanned them, starting from the top of the page. Mai, Mai, Mai, Azula, Mai, Ty Lee...Why didn't he have any guy friends?

Ah, one from that Teo kid, and another from Haru. Then another dozen from Mai. She sent him so many emails, and they were all so weird and pointless. Only a few of them were actually worth reading. First he deleted all the chainmail, boy how he hated those. Then he opened the email from Mai.

**Now in China. Very boring. Miss u.**

He sighed and started to type. He hated when she used "u" instead of "you" and didn't bother to spell it out. It made the statement a lot less meaningful.

**Miss you too. Coming back home in three days.**

He clicked the send button and checked the rest of her emails. After she was done, it was time to move on to his sister. Knowing that all her emails were either death threats or blackmail, he didn't bother checking them, and deleted them without a second thought. On to Ty Lee. Oh, she was always so peppy, and he wasn't always in the mood for her, but he figured he could use a little distraction.

**Hiya Zuzu! Howz the water park? I sure wish I could go too a water park! Wouldnt that b soooo kewl? Omg, it was sooo humid in China today, and Mais hair just went poof! neway, Chinese food is the cooooolest! I wanted to save some for u, but Azula said it would rot. Thats disgusting. I dont think rotton food would b a good present, unless u like moldy fuzzy stuff? How waz ur trip? Did I ask u that? I think I did...I'm feeling very pink today, hbu?**

**Hugz,**

**Ty Lee**

**((A/N:Gosh, this took me a looong time to type...had to put in some errors, you know? Hbu: How about you?))**

Zuko cringed at the nickname his sister had given him. Apparently it had caught on. He was half smiling at the end of her email. She wrote 4x more than Mai ever had. He clicked reply.

**The waterpark was pretty great.**

He paused. Should he mention Katara? Probably not. She'd make a big deal about it, and tell Mai. He grimaced. No, Mai finding out about her would not be good.

**No, Ty Lee, I don't like rotten food. Again, my trip is going great, thanks for asking. (Twice) I'm feeling bright red today.**

**-Zuko**

**(P.S Aren't you always feeling pink?)**

Zuko looked it over and decided it was good. He had no idea what red meant, let alone _bright _red, but it was an answer, and he hoped it was the right one. He clicked "send".

Then he opened Teo's email.

**Bad news: Broke both my legs in soccer.**

**Good news: We won.**

**Teo**

**PS: You wanna sign my cast?**

Zuko smiled.

**Sorry about your legs. Yeah I heard you won. Congrats! Sure, I'll sign your cast.**

Send.

Lastly, Haru's.

**Mom's giving me enough homework to fill a swimming pool. Help.**

**-Haru**

Zuko laughed.

**Help is on the way. Just wait three days.**

Send.

Finally. He was done with his emails, and now his inbox was empty. It was 9:00, and he wasn't tired, so he turned on the T.V and waited.

OoOoOoOoO

Seven. Seven whole boxes of chicken nuggets. And, five chicken sandwiches. Why did her brother's stomach have to be a bottomless pit of nothingness? When is he ever _not _hungry?

"ARE YOU FULL YET?" Katara half yelled, half whispered to her brother.

In between bites, Sokka replied, "Not...yet...best...chicken...inworld...don't...want...towaste..."

Katara was ready to strangle him. It was almost nine thirty, she was very tired, and when she's tired, she's very impatient and grumpy.

"I...am about...ready...to kill you." Katara hissed viciously.

"Relax, sis, why are you in such a hurry anyway?" He asked, taking a big bite out of his chicken sandwich. The cashiers were looking at him with a mix of delight and disgust. He sure gave them a lot of business.

"I'm tired. That's all," She replied curtly. That was half the truth, but at least it was the truth.

Sokka took a noisy sip of lemonade. "After I finish these two boxes, and this lemonade, and this sandwich...we'll be outta here. Okay?"

"You better make it snappy, or I'm gonna shove the remains of your feast down your scrawny throat, okay?" Katara growled.

"Wow...I think Toph's gotten to you...maybe...she possessed you!"

"Shut up you knucklehead."

Sokka grumbled to himself, and continued scarfing down his sandwich.

Katara looked away. His revolting table manners were unbearable.

OoOoOoOoO

It was around 10:30 when Zuko started to panic. What if she just threw it away? What if she just laughed? What if she never opened the cookie? What if some hobo found it in the trash and pretended to be her? He shivered at the last thought. He didn't know why he even bothered to stay up so late. Giving up, he shut down his laptop and closed it with a sigh. Maybe she doesn't know how much her reply meant to him. Maybe she thought it was funny to leave him waiting. Maybe she didn't care how much it crushed him.

**A/N: Like it? Hate it? VOICE YOUR OPINION IN A...REVIEW! Okay, commercial done, I really do hope you guys like it. Mgh...Jet lag. The only bad thing about vacation. :) Well, my work here is done for the day. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Sorry for not updating in a while!**

**Katara's POV**

My eyes fluttered open, and they were met with darkness. Total darkness. I stretched and took my cell phone which was on my desk. I turned it on. 2:41 am. Why had I woken up this early? And why wasn't I tired at all? We got home at around 11:00, and I was exhausted then. Suddenly, my brain remembered something. It came so quickly, that it almost hurt. _I need to email Zuko! _I swung my legs over the edge of my bed, and grabbed my laptop. I turned it on, and the light that it gave off blinded me for a moment. I quickly looked away, and blinked at the spots in front of my eyes until they left.

I quickly entered my password, and I cringed at how loud my keyboard was. The sound was magnified by the silence. I tried to type as gently as possible, but even that didn't help. I sighed and closed my door, hoping that would keep the noise from reaching my dad's ears. I wasn't worried about Sokka, once he was asleep, he was dead to the world. My dad, on the other hand, was a _very _light sleeper.

I went to my email account, and when the page opened up, it announced, "YOU HAVE MAIL."

I jumped and immediately lowered the sound. "Shut up, shut up, shut up…" I hissed at my computer as someone tried to chat with me, creating several _ding!_ noises.

I sighed. Ty Lee. Oh yeah, she was in China. It was around the afternoon for her. I tried to get her to go away.

"Sorry, Ty Lee. Can't talk much right now," I typed. Not that I didn't like her, it's just that when I talk to her, I suddenly get sucked into a five-hour conversation about Mai's toenails, and that was _not _what I needed right now.

**Ty Lee: **_Oh yea! Ur still in america, right? Oops! Sry!_

**Katara: **_It's all right_.

I started typing up an email to Zuko.

_Hey! I'm so glad you gave me your email! Clever thinking, hiding it in the cookie. But what if I never opened it? Hm? What would you do then, genius?_

_Haha, anyway, I'm typing this at 2:41 in the morning. That is dedication, my friend. _

_Sorry I couldn't email you earlier, it's just that we went to a restaurant…_

_Long story short, it was a restaurant that serves chicken, and we brought my brother. You get where I'm going with this?_

_Anyway, reply soon._

_~Katara_

I stopped typing. I didn't really have anything to say. I sent it, and checked my inbox. Plenty from Aang, some from Haru, a few from Jet, and another from my brother…Wow…I need some more girl friends. Oh, one from Ty Lee, and some from Suki. Too bad Toph doesn't have an email…well, then again, that wouldn't really be possible…

**Zuko's POV**

I got up and ran to the bathroom. That's how I woke up at 2:33 in the morning. But once I wake up, I can't really fall asleep again. There was this strange force drawing me towards my laptop anyway.

Okay, maybe that strange force was the hope that Katara woke up at midnight just to send me an email, but that was a ridiculous hope, right? I sighed. The temptation was too great. I just had to log on to my email.

0 New Messages.

Yeah, what did I expect, anyway? For her to wake up in the middle of the night thinking, "_OH MAN! I forgot to email Zuko!"_?

I leaned back into my pillow, closing my eyes. I fell asleep for a while, I guess, because the next thing I know, Ty Lee was trying to talk to me.

**Ty Lee: **_ZUKO! I cant believe ur on 2!_

**Zuko: **_What do you mean? _

**Ty Lee: **_o my other friend is on. U probs dont kno her._

**Zuko: **_Who?_

**Ty Lee: **_Katara._

Then, as if on cue, an email from Katara popped up in my inbox. I stared at it for a second, wondering if this was just a weird dream. Then I shook my head. No, I was awake for sure. Then a chat box suddenly popped up, and someone started talking to me.

_ZUKO! _

_Omg I can't believe you're on!_

_What are you doing up so late?_

It took me a while to process who was talking to me. It was Katara! So she _did _wake up in the middle of the night? What a weird coincidence…

**Zuko: **_I should ask you the same question._

**Katara: **_Oh…well…I don't really know, actually. I just woke up and suddenly remembered that I didn't email you. Weird, huh? I'm not even tired!_

**Zuko: **_That is weird…_

So my seemingly ridiculous hopes were actually correct for once?

**Katara: **_Well?_

**Zuko: **_Well what?_

**Katara: **_I asked you why you were up._

**Zuko: **_Well…If you really must know…_

**Katara: **_Yes, I really must._

**Zuko: **_I had an urge to pee._

**Katara: **_…LOL!_

**Zuko: **_Glad you find that amusing._

**Katara: **_Hilarious. Anyway, so why are you on then?_

**Zuko: **_Because I couldn't fall asleep, and I had this weird feeling that you would email me right around now…_

**Katara: **_Woah. That's a little bit freaky._

**Zuko: **_Yeah, just a bit. I was beginning to worry that you weren't going to reply to me!_

**Katara: **_Are you kidding? I was ecstatic when you gave me your email! I already explained why I was late in my email, and I don't want to explain again._

I smiled. Ecstatic, eh?

**Katara: **_Oh no…Dad's coming. Gotta go! BYE!_

**Zuko: **_Wait! Will you be on later?_

**Katara: **_Definitely._

Katara is no longer able to chat.

I sighed happily. I was about to sign out of my email account, when Ty Lee started talking to me again.

**Ty Lee: **_Oh, and Zuko?_

**Zuko: **_Yeah?_

**Ty Lee: **_I read ur email! who r u in love with?_

**Zuko: **_Wait…what?_

**Ty Lee: **_u sed you wer feeling brite red. u no that means love, rite?_

**Zuko: **_Oh…_

**Ty Lee: **_WHO IS IT! _

**Zuko: **_I…uh…I didn't…_

**Ty Lee: **_ZUZU'S IN LOOOVVVE!_

Oh gods. Agni help me.

**Ty Lee: **_Hm…Mai's not gonna b happy about that…_

**Zuko: **_WAIT! I didn't mean…I didn't know…I didn't know red meant…_

**Ty Lee: **_brb_

**Zuko: **_NO! Ty Lee! Wait!_

**Katara's POV**

I quickly exited my email, forgetting to log off, and closed my laptop. I tucked it under my pillow, and I pretended to be asleep.

My dad opened the door, and looked at my pretending-to-be-sleeping form.

"Katara, I know you're awake."

I sighed. My dad knew me too well. I sat up and held both hands up in defeat.

"You caught me, dad."

"That's right. What are you doing awake so late?" He asked me.

"I woke up, and I couldn't fall asleep. So I decided to write a letter to my friend." I left out a few things, but it was the truth.

"Which friend?" Great. He just _had _to know.

"Uh…Toph!" Damn. I was a terrible liar.

"Toph is blind. I'm not an idiot."

"Sorry dad, I meant Suki," I said. My dad was okay with a few things. Boys are not one of them. Aang is okay because he is too "innocent". Haru is apparently "a nice boy", and Sokka…well, he's my brother. But boys like Zuko; older, stronger, etc. were definitely not acceptable in my dad's book. After what happened with Jet, my dad's not willing to make any exceptions.

My dad looked at me suspiciously, but gave up. "All right, I'll buy it for now."

I gave him a weak smile, and he left. I sighed. That was almost too close.

**Zuko's POV**

**Ty Lee: **_Back!_

**Zuko: **_Ty Lee! Ty Lee, where did you go?_

**Ty Lee: **_i went 2 get sum watre_

_i mean water_

I sighed in relief.

**Zuko: **_Oh okay…_

**Ty Lee: **_oh, and Mai sed she wants to "have a wrd with u." i think ur in truble, Zuko!_

**Zuko: **_No! Ty Lee! Wait!_

**Ty Lee: **_Hello, Zuko. This is Mai._

I gulped.

**Zuko: **_Hi Mai…_

**A/N: Haha, Zuko's in trouble! I hope you liked it!**


	16. Trouble

**A/N: I'm soooo sorry guys! This vacation has been so much longer than usual, and I know I haven't had time during the school year either, so I made you wait so long! I hope this chapter is good enough to compensate for your long wait. **

**Ty Lee: **_Okay, who is this barbaric slut-whore that you're cheating on me with?_

_Does she go to our school? Oh, you better hope she doesn't go to our school. I'm calling you._

A few seconds later, Zuko's phone rang and he reluctantly picked it up.

"Mai, would you listen to me for a second?" Zuko pleaded.

"No, Zuko. You listen to me. If you _are_ cheating on me, let's make a couple things clear. First of all, I will _find you._ Then I will tie you down and sever any protruding appendages, understand? That means all fingers, toes, arms, legs, and that one area that you _really _hope I better not cut off."

Zuko cringed as his eyes flickered worriedly to his precious lower area. He knew how capable she was of fulfilling that threat.

"Mai, I-"

"_And then_," She cut him off, "I will cook you alive and feed you to Azula's mongoose dragon-"

"Wait, she still _has_ that?" Zuko said in disbelief. Ozai had told her to get rid of it years ago.

Mai ignored Zuko's comment and continued. "Then I will make my way to _hell_ and bring you back to life just so I can murder you again. Do I make myself absolutely clear?" She hissed. Zuko gulped at the coldness of her tone. Alone in the darkness of his room, Mai's threat was a lot more terrifying than if had he been in the company of someone else, or if the lights were on.

"But Mai…""Answer my question, Zuko!"

"Yes. Very clear. But I'm _not_-"

"Do you know that you cheating on me would break my heart?" Mai suddenly said.

Silence.

"You know I'd do anything for you, right?" Mai told him, a little too emotionlessly.

"So if you just tell me her name, we can resolve this issue quickly and somewhat painlessly."

"MAI! I am not cheating on you!" Zuko half-yelled into his phone.

Another silence.

"Fine," She responded, her tone harder than before. "Don't tell me your little slut-whore's name. But Zuko, you and I are now walking on thin ice."

She hung up, leaving Zuko shocked and slightly relieved. Why did the world hate him? Did he do anything wrong? Not that he remembered…Although maybe stealing Jet's phone and swapping all his contacts wasn't the act of a saint…_Okay, I promise Universe, that I'll tell Jet what happened as soon as I can. Actually…Why not now?_

Zuko reached for his phone and sent Jet a quick text._Hey I swapped all your contacts on your phone a few weeks ago. Sorry._

He set down his phone and breathed a sigh of relief. _Now all is right in the world. _

* * *

**Zuko's POV**

I was just on the verge of sleep when my phone buzzed from the nightstand.

_What the hell, dude! It's like 3 a.m! And yeah, I know. I fucking texted my mom instead of this girl I met…Long story. I'm going to fucking kill you, bastard._

Awesome. Now there's two people that want to kill me.I put his phone down again and decided not to reply. There really was no use in apologizing again. After all, the only way Jet forgives someone is after a little revenge.

I turned back to my computer and was just about to turn it off when I discovered another chat box waiting to be replied to.

**Ty Lee: **_wow, Mai's rly mad…_

Am I ever going to get any sleep tonight?

**Zuko: **_Ty Lee, I'm really not in the mood right now… _

**Ty Lee: **_Sry Zuko, but cheating is not nice._

**Zuko: **_I'M NOT CHEATING ON MAI!_

**Ty Lee: **_Oh…then y didnt u say so? _

Oh Agni…fuck my life…

**Ty Lee: **_I gotta go. Mai says I cant talk 2 u nemore. Bye!_

Zuko fell back onto his pillow. What the hell just happened in the last half hour?

* * *

**Katara's POV**

**Katara: **_I'm back…_

**Zuko: **_What happened?_

**Katara: **_Oh, my dad doesn't trust me anymore. _

**Zuko: **_Apparently neither does my girlfriend._

My eyes widened as a sharp ache filled my chest. _Zuko has a girlfriend? _

**Katara: **_You never told me you had a girlfriend!_

**Zuko **(not noticing anything wrong)**: **_Oh yeah, her name is Mai. She thinks I'm cheating on her or some shit._

Mai? That sophomore that Ty Lee keeps telling me about? The rich spoiled brat that's in Azula's little posse? What the hell? Why her? _Why her? _That little voice in my head teased me. _As opposed to who? You? _I sighed dejectedly. Of course I didn't think a guy like him would go for a freshman. Well then again, why not? Jet's one year older than me, and we were together for a while before that one incident…

At that moment, I had a sudden epiphany. Zuko went to the same school as me! Of course! Why didn't I see it before? It was just a couple of days ago that he mentioned his psychopath sister. That must've been Azula! She's his little sister! Of course, I didn't know any other psychopath with an older brother. Actually, I didn't know any other psychopath. Period. Then Mai's a sophmore, just like Zuko, and that's how they know each other. It's a wonder I've never heard of him before.

**Zuko's POV**

**Zuko: **_Hello?_

**Katara: **_Oh sorry. I was just thinking…Do you go BMA? Bending Masters Academy?_

Oh no. Not _another _creepy stalker lunatic!

**Zuko: **_Uh…How did you know that?_

**Katara: **_Only because I go there, too!_

Oh thank Agni. I don't have to move again…Or have my name changed to "Junior" _again_…

**Zuko: **_Really? I've never seen you around. Or Sokka for that matter. I think I would've remembered. _

**Katara: **_Probably because Sokka's not a bender. He only got in because he's got mad strategy skills. And his boomerang and sword skills were an added bonus. Don't tell him I said that. He's already got a major ego ever since Suki agreed to be his girlfriend. _

**Zuko: **_Suki goes to BMA, too? Who else goes that I don't know about?_

**Katara: **_Toph. She got voted Best Bender last year. She's the only metalbender in the world!_

**Zuko: **_How'd she learn to do that?_

**Katara: **_She ran away from home and got kidnapped in a metal box._

**Zuko: **_Wow. Impressive._

**Katara: **_No doubt about it._

I yawned and was reminded of how late it was.

**Katara: **_I think I need to go to sleep now or else it'll throw off my whole eating schedule and sleeping schedule and all that crap._

**Zuko: **_No don't go! Not yet._

Shit. Why'd I type that? It sounds like something from a cheesy old romance movie. Delete…delete…Take it back…take it back…I've never done anything wrong! Please, universe, just this once!

**Katara: **_Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow. Preferably when I'm fully awake. _

Hm…That wasn't as bad as it could've been.

**Zuko: **_Okay. And when will that be?_

**Katara: **_After I come back from the library. Probably around five._

**Zuko: **_Why the library?_

**Katara: **_Because I need to finish the stupid summer reading assignment._

**Zuko:** _Damn! I didn't even start that yet!_

**Katara: **_Then why don't you come with me? We only have a couple of weeks until school starts again._

**Zuko: **_Sure. Wan Shi Tong's Library, right?_

**Katara: **_Yup. See you there at around two, okay? _

**Zuko: **_Okay. Goodnight._

**Katara: **_Goodnight!_

**A/N: I'm SO SORRY I haven't updated in a while, and that is because**

**A) My summer has been a lot busier than I thought it would be**

**B) I wanted a really good continuation to the cliffhanger**

**C) I was kind of scared to update because I haven't done so in a while and I thought you guys wouldn't like my writing anymore, or that the continuation wasn't as good as you hoped for**

**So if there's anything I can approve on, please let me know! **

**A/N: Just wondering…I think emails might be a little old-fashioned. Tell me if you think Zuko should give Katara his number instead. **


End file.
